Through Muggleborn Eyes: Year Two
by Kris Pilar
Summary: Year two is beginning and Bryt's small hope for an adventure like the year before is answered when Harry begins hearing voices and students are being attacked. The worst part is that Harry is the person people suspect the most.
1. Letters

Bryt Watkins was perched at her window as she had been since she had woken up that morning. Hermione Granger, Bryt's closest friend, was arriving today to spend the rest of their summer vacation together.

Bryt's room was drastically different to what it would have been last year, before she had found out she was a witch. Her bed lay in the center and the bedspread left unmade, and that was the end of how her room used to be. A cot was resting between the bed and the wall, set there for the friend Bryt was waiting for. A trunk lay under the window beside Bryt, left open and holding black robes, several books, quills, and rolls of parchments. There was a small table in one corner where a cauldron was sitting next to two bottles of odd-colored liquid. The chest of drawers sat in another corner with a large bird cage sitting atop it next to hair bands and a brush. The desk was on the other side of the bedroom door and held a computer and an picture where the figures were moving. Two people were in it. Both had some Hispanic features and looked to be siblings with identical dark eyes and black hair. The girl was on her brother's back piggy-back style and laughing and the boy occasionally turned in a circle or readjusted his sister's weight.

Bryt straightened up excitedly as she heard a car approaching in the distance. Not even a minute later, the car came into view, heading for the Watkins household. As it pulled to a stop, Bryt could clearly make out the bushy-haired girl in the back seat.

"Hermione!" Bryt called out the window happily before running from her perch at the window into the hallway and out the front door. She had moved so quickly that she had made it to the car and threw her arms around her friend in a hug just as Hermione was closing the car door.

"It's great to see you again, too, Bryt," Hermione grinned, "Do you mind helping me with my trunk?"

"Sure," Bryt grinned, waving to Mr. Granger in the driver's seat before helping Hermione get her school trunk from the trunk of the car.

After Hermione bid her father goodbye, she and Bryt moved Hermione's trunk into Bryt's bedroom and placed it next to the cot just as Bryt's mother came into the room.

"Great to see you again, Hermione," Mrs. Watkins grinned, shaking the young girl's hand, "Bryt's talked a lot about you."

"Nice to see you, too, Mrs. Watkins," Hermione grinned.

"You'll meet my husband and the twins later today," Mrs. Watkins said, "Greg took the boys into London for a movie. I thought you'd like to spend a little time together before they begin hounding your friend."

"Thanks Mom," Bryt grinned as her mother left and she turned to Hermione, giggling at Hermione's odd expression, "I told you the guys in my family are obsessed with magic. Anyway, I'm really glad you could come. Sorry my room's a mess. I just couldn' concentrate on cleanin' with you comin' over."

Bryt grinned as she sat down on her unmade bed just to immediately jump up with a yelp.

"What's wrong?" Hermione asked, coming over.

Bryt turned to her bed to see a gray mass of feathers right where she had tried to sit down. Bryt blinked as she knelt down to study the thing just to realize that it was a old owl.

"Poor thing!" Hermione gasped as she picked up the owl and a letter fell, "He looks ill!"

"I'll let him rest in Joey's cage for a bit," Bryt said, taking the owl over and placing him in the empty bird cage before going back to the letter laying on her bed, "It's from Ron...I was hopin' Harry'd finally written."

Ron Weasley and Harry Potter were two other friends of Bryt's. Though it seemed she got along better with them than she did Hermione(she had more in common with the boys, after all), Bryt was much closer to Hermione. It was possible that it was because they were both girls, or it was due to the fact Hermione was so much like one of Bryt's old friends from the States, or it could have been a mixture of both.

Over the summer, though, Harry hadn't written once to Bryt, despite the letters she had sent to him. She had found out from talking to Hermione over the phone and writing with Ron that neither of them had received letters from Harry, either. Bryt was getting more and more worried, wondering what could have happened and if it had anything to do with Harry's aunt, uncle, and cousin, all of whom hated magic. Which, in turn, meant they hated Harry. Bryt had recently been wishing she had gotten Harry's number at the end of last year. Then she could have called the Dursleys to find out if Harry was okay.

Bryt turned back to the letter in her hands and opened it as Hermione sat on the cot that had been set up for her. Bryt read it aloud:

"_'Dear Bryt and Hermione (if she gets there before Errol)_

"_'I still haven't gotten any word from Harry and I've had enough of it. Fred, George, and I are heading right to that house and are taking Harry away from those Muggles. And, hopefully, find out why he hasn't answered any of our letters._

"_'Wish us luck! Ron.'_"

"I hope he's not planning anything dangerous!" Hermione exclaimed at once, "They'll get themselves and Harry in trouble!"

"I'm sure they'll be fine," Bryt grinned over at her friend before grabbing a blank piece of parchment and the quill sitting in ink next to her computer monitor, "But I'll relay your message to them. Anythin' else you wish to say?"

"They better not do anything to get them into trouble," Hermione said again and Bryt laughed.

"Right then," she said, putting her quill to paper as she began to write.

_'Dear Ron and Harry (if he's there!)_

_Hermione got here right as I got your letter, Ron. Your owl seems sick...Maybe you should get a new one, or wait for Joey. It's probably quicker that way, anyway._

_We hope you got Harry okay and Hermione hopes you didn't do anything to get you guys in trouble. I personally don't care what you have to do to get Harry away from his family. _

_I want to hear everything about what happened and why Harry's been ignoring our letters. Was it because of his aunt and uncle? Is Harry okay? You __have__ to let us know! But maybe you should send Hedwig because your owl doesn't look like he'll last much longer..._

_Remember, Hermione's staying here for the rest of summer. We can't wait to see you when school starts._

_See you soon!_

_Bryt & Hermione'_

"There," Bryt grinned, setting the letter aside to let the ink dry. She turned to see Hermione was pulling out a couple of Lockhart books from her school trunk. Bryt had lent them to her friend at the beginning of the summer.

"I brought your books back," Hermione said without need as she handed Bryt the two books, "I can't understand why Julio thinks Lockhart's a fraud."

"Sofí thinks he's jealous of all Lockhart's done," Bryt said as Hermione noticed Bryt's picture sitting on her desk.

"Did you take that over the summer?" she asked, nodding to the picture.

"At Sofí's birthday party," Bryt grinned, "And that reminds me...Julio liked the picture of you I gave him for you and he sent one back with me...Hold on."

Bryt went to her still-packed suitcase from where she had arrived home a little over a week before and pulled out a moving picture of Julio. The blonde went over and gave Hermione the photo with a grin.

"Thanks," Hermione returned her friend's grin, studying the picture closely before fishing out one of her books and putting it away in the pages.

"We'll find you a frame for it when we get school supplies," Bryt grinned, "Whenever the letters come."

As if on cue, an owl swept into the room and dropped two letters on Bryt's bed before swooping out again. Bryt picked them up and noticed one was addressed to Hermione and handed it to her friend as she opened her own.

"I should make comments about expectin' letters more often," Bryt laughed before looking down at her school list.

SECOND YEAR STUDENTS WILL REQUIRE:

_The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 2 _by Miranda Goshawk  
_Bread with a Banshee_ by Gilderoy Lockhart  
_Gadding with Ghouls_ by Gilderoy Lockhart  
_Holidays with Hags_ by Gilderoy Lockhart  
_Travels with Trolls_ by Gilderoy Lockhart  
_Voyages with Vampires_ by Gilderoy Lockhart  
_Wanderings with Werewolves_ by Gilderoy Lockhart  
_Year with the Yeti_ by Gilderoy Lockhart

"Looks like you're gonna get your own copies now," Bryt laughed, "Hold on. I'll go let Mom know we got our lists."

Bryt hurried from her bedroom and down the hall. She went through the small study and into the kitchen where her mother was working on lunch.

"School lists came, Mom," Bryt grinned, "When do you think we can go get our supplies?"

"Your father's insistin' on takin' you," Mrs. Watkins gave a sigh, shaking her head, "His next day off is next Wednesday, if you can wait 'til then."

"That's fine," Bryt grinned, hurrying back to her room to tell Hermione.

"Let Ron and Harry know," Hermione said, "We can try and meet them in Diagon Alley."

"Good idea!" Bryt said, grabbing her quill and adding one last message to her letter.

_'P.S. Hermione and I are going to Diagon Alley next Wednesday to get our school supplies. Try to meet us there if you can. We'll meet you outside of Gringotts.'_

"I guess we should send the old owl on his way," Bryt sighed after her ink dried. She took her letter to the owl and attached it to his leg before sending him off through the window. For several minutes, Bryt wasn't sure if the owl would stay air born, but it finally disappeared in the distance.

"I hope the poor thing will make it..." Hermione said, staring out the window still.

"Yeah, same here..." Bryt said, "But he must be tougher than he looks. Anyway, want to take a walk outside? It's a really clear day and I can show you where I usually like to hang out."

Hermione gave a nod and the two girls headed out into the sunshine, enjoying their walk. Bryt spent most of it telling Hermione of everything she had done the when she had been visiting her friends in the States.

"Sofí had a classic beach party for her birthday," Bryt said, "It was great until a nasty storm hit and we actually lost the beach umbrella. We ended up soaked and Mrs. García didn' want us gettin' in her car wet. Sofí wanted to dry off with a spell, but Mr. and Mrs. García wouldn' allow it."

"Of course not," Hermione said, "There were probably Muggles around."

"Not really, except for Mrs. García," Bryt explained, "And Mr. García's Muggleborn. Neither think magic should be used for anythin' other than emergencies. I guess that's why electronics work so well in their house, they don' use magic much."

"I think that's a smart idea," Hermione said, "Even though we're witches and wizards, it doesn't mean we should use magic for everything."

"Yeah, I guess," Bryt shrugged, then turned to walk backwards in front of Hermione, "Anyway, Sofí and Julio are actually gonna spend all summer here next year! You've gotta come by sometime to meet 'em!"

"I'd love that!" Hermione grinned, "It will be really nice to finally meet Julio in person."

"Julio's just as excited to meet you," Bryt grinned.

"Bryt, Hermione, lunch is done!" Mrs. Watkins called from the kitchen window.

As the two headed back to Bryt's house, Bryt noticed the family van pulling into the garage.

"Looks like they're back," Bryt said, leading Hermione into the kitchen.

The two had just sat down to the lunch that Mrs. Watkins had fixed when Bryt's father and brothers came in the room.

"Hi!" Mike and Drew chorused, grinning at Hermione.

"And you must be Hermione," Mr. Watkins added, "The young witch from Bryt's new school."

"Dad, don' start," Bryt said, "Hermione's Muggleborn, too, she probably couldn' tell you any more than I already have."

Of course, Bryt didn't actually believe that. She bet that Hermione knew a lot more about the magical world than Bryt did, but she didn't want her father annoying her best friend with questions. Bryt noticed Hermione looking over at her and Bryt turned to her friend, mouthing 'please don't get him started'.

Hermione just gave a nod and turned back to her lunch.

"We got our school letters today, Dad," Bryt said, "I won' need much this year, just some more potion ingredients and one book. My Lockhart set is on the list this year."

"Can we come to Diagon Alley with you?" Mike asked excitedly.

"Not this year, boys," Mrs. Watkins cut in before her husband could reply, which got a groan from both her sons.

After a noisy lunch of Mike and Drew constantly bugging Bryt and Hermione about school stories(most of which Bryt had already told them several times), Bryt and Hermione stood up and started back for Bryt's room.

"Are your brothers always like that?" Hermione asked.

"Yeah, unfortunately," Bryt replied, "You'd think after hearin' about a Quidditch match ten times they'd stop asking. I kind-of hope _they'll_ get letters to Hogwarts in a few years, then they'd leave me alone."

"You never know, they might," Hermione replied, "I'm sure there are at least some Muggleborns at Hogwarts who have a brother or sister who's also a witch or wizard."

"Maybe," Bryt flopped down on her bed and stretched out, "Won' know for a couple of years, anyway. If it weren' for the fact I need the books for school, I'd let those two read my Lockhart books. That'd keep 'em occupied."

After that, Bryt and Hermione went to Gilderoy Lockhart and long discussions of his adventures. The two stayed up until well after midnight when Mrs. Watkins caught them and told them to get to sleep, which they both agreed to, deciding to finish their conversation in the morning.


	2. School Supplies

Wednesday came quickly and Mrs. Watkins woke the girls early. They dressed quickly and both brushed through their hair, Bryt pulling hers back as she always did. They went into the kitchen to eat the pancakes Mrs. Watkins had prepared for them and all through breakfast, Mike and Drew were, once again, begging to go to Diagon Alley as well.

"Not this time, boys," Mrs. Watkins kept repeating.

Still, they continued to beg all the way up to when Bryt and Hermione pulled on their coats and followed Mr. Weasley out to the door. They made their way into London and Bryt and Hermione led Mr. Watkins to The Leaky Cauldron and through the back to Diagon Alley.

Bryt instantly knew their shopping was going to be hard. Mr. Watkins kept wanting to go into every shop and study everything they passed. Bryt had to keep reminding him that they had to go to the wizard bank, Gringotts, first so their money could be exchanged for wizarding money and she wondered if her Herbology teacher, Sprout, had gotten this annoyed with her the year before when Bryt came to Diagon Alley for the first time. If she had, she had been extremely good at hiding it. Either that, or Bryt just didn't notice in her excitement that day.

Once they reached the bank, Mr. Watkins took it upon himself to do the money exchange and told the girls to wait outside.

"I really hope he doesn' do anythin' stupid in there," Bryt groaned.

"Look, there's Harry and Hagrid!" Hermione exclaimed, starting down the stairs.

Bryt turned and grinned, forgetting her father as she spotted her black-haired friend and the giant Hagrid. Bryt ran down the stairway and threw her arms around Harry in a hug before pulling back, her eyes widening at Harry's appearance. His glasses were broken and his clothes were covered in dirt.

"What happened?" Bryt asked, looking Harry up and down again, "Why haven' you been answerin' my letters? We've been worried!"

"Are you coming into Gringotts, Harry?" Hermione asked.

"As soon as I've found the Weasleys," Harry spoke up for the first time since the girls had rushed him.

"Yeh won't have long ter wait," Hagrid spoke up and Bryt turned to see Ron, Fred, George, and Percy were running towards them with a man Bryt guessed to be Mr. Weasley.

Bryt grinned brightly seeing them and hugged Ron in greeting as soon as he approached.

"Bryt," Ron groaned, pulling away as Fred and George started smirking. They looked like they were about to say something, but Mr. Weasley had spoken up.

"Harry! We _hoped_ you'd only gone one grate too far...Molly's frantic—she's coming now—"

"What're you talkin' about?" Bryt blinked, though the Weasleys didn't seem to hear.

"Where did you come out?" Ron was asking.

"Knockturn Alley," Harry said.

"_Excellent!_" the Weasley twins exclaimed.

"We've never been allowed in," Ron groaned.

"And I ruddy well think not," Hagrid spoke up again.

"What are you talkin' about?" Bryt asked again as Mrs. Weasley came up, Ginny right behind. Bryt recognized them though she had only met them briefly at the beginning of summer.

"Oh, Harry—oh, my dear—you could have been anywhere—"

Mrs. Weasley began brushing soot from Harry's clothes and repaired his glasses. Bryt couldn't help but start giggling at Harry's expression as he just stood there.

"Well, gotta be off," Hagrid grinned as Mrs. Weasley kept thanking him for helping Harry, "See yer at Hogwarts!"

"See you, Hagrid!" Bryt waved before heading back up the stairs to Gringotts with her friends and the rest of the Weasleys.

"Guess who I saw in Borgin and Burkes," Harry spoke up immediately, keeping Bryt from reasking her questions, "Malfoy and his father."

"Did Lucius Malfoy buy anything?"

Bryt looked over her shoulder to see Mr. Weasley was right behind them.

"No, he was selling—"

"So he's worried," Mr. Weasley cut Harry off, "Oh, I'd love to get Lucius Malfoy for something..."

"You be careful, Arthur," Mrs. Weasley spoke up as they entered Gringotts, "That family's trouble. Don't go biting off more than you can chew—"

"So you don't think I'm a match for Lucius Malfoy?"

"Bryt, Hermione, I said to wait outside."

The conversation had died there as Mr. Watkins made his way over, handing the girls the money he had exchanged for them.

"Sorry, we just got caught up with our friends," Bryt said, then introduced Harry, Ron, and Ron's family. Mr. Weasley seemed very interested in Bryt's father.

"You're a _Muggle_!" Mr. Weasley grinned, "We must have a drink! I insist!"

Bryt and Hermione were both giggling as Mr. Watkins blinked at Mr. Weasley when Mrs. Weasley pulled her husband away.

"See you in a bit," Bryt grinned as Ron and Harry left with he Weasleys.

"You know, I think I'll take Mr. Weasley up on that drink when he comes back," Mr. Watkins grinned, running his hand through his hair.

"That's one conversation I'd love to hear," Bryt whispered to Hermione with a giggle. She had heard from Ron that Mr. Weasley was fascinated with Muggles. A conversation between him and Bryt's father, who was obsessed with witches and wizards, was one conversation that could turn out to be very interesting.

After several minutes, the Weasleys and Harry returned and Bryt, Hermione, and Mr. Watkins joined them as they headed outside. Mr. Weasley once again offered Bryt's father a drink and Mr. Watkins was quick to accept. Fred and George headed off towards their friend Lee Jordan and Percy left, muttering something that Bryt couldn't hear.

"We'll met at Flourish and Blotts in an hour to buy your schoolbooks," Mrs. Weasley grinned before heading off with Ginny, shouting off towards the twins, "And not one step down Knockturn Alley!"

"So, what's been happenin', Harry?" Bryt asked as they started off down the street, "Why haven' you been answerin' our letters?"

"Dobby, this house elf—" Harry started.

"House elf?" Bryt interrupted.

"They're servants," Ron answered, "They'll do the cooking, cleaning, things like that. You usually only find them at big manors, though. What family was Dobby from?"

"He wouldn't say," Harry said, "Every time he got close, he started hitting himself on the head—"

"That's horrible!" Bryt and Hermione cut in.

"He probably wasn't allowed to say," Ron said, "House elves are bound to their families."

"Sounds like slavery," Bryt crossed her arms over her chest.

"It is for Dobby at least," Harry said, "Anyway, Dobby was taking my letters because he wanted me to think no one wanted me at Hogwarts and he nearly got me expelled. Thanks to him, the Dursleys found out I can't use magic outside of school and they locked me in my room. If Ron, Fred, and George hadn't come—"

"How _did_ they rescue you?" Bryt asked, "Ron didn' say in the letter."

"They came in this flying car Mr. Weasley has," Harry grinned as they stopped at Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlor and Harry bought the the quartet each some ice cream.

"A flying car?" Bryt and Hermione echoed together, Bryt in excitement and Hermione in worry.

"You could have been _seen_!" Hermione gasped.

"You actually flew a car?" Bryt asked excitedly, then went into a stream of questions about the car which Ron and Harry seemed happy to answer. The conversation didn't drop until they passed a little shop and Hermione interrupted them, saying she wanted to get a picture frame. Bryt headed inside with her and bought the frame, telling Hermione it would be her birthday present, and the two headed back outside.

"What do you want a picture frame for?" Ron asked.

"To put a picture in, duh," Bryt smirked back, "That's usually what they're for."

"Ha, ha," Ron rolled his eyes. Bryt grinned sweetly, reaching up to tighten her ponytail.

"By the way, Bryt," Harry said cut in, "What's with that bracelet? I thought you didn't like jewelry."

Bryt looked down at the sky blue chip bracelet hanging loosely around her left wrist.

"It's turquoise," Bryt said simply, "It's supposed to bring luck. I bought it while visitin' with Sofí and Julio. After last year, I thought we needed a bit of luck. And for that, I can change my mind about wearin' a little jewelry."

"I never thought you were superstitious," Ron said.

"Just 'cause I buy a lucky charm doesn' mean I'm superstitious," Bryt shot back.

At the end of the hour, the four made their way to Flourish and Blotts where a large crowd was already building up outside the bookstore. Bryt was about to ask what was going on, but she cut herself off as she noticed the large banner strung across the windows.

GILDEROY LOCKHART  
will be signing copies of his autobiography  
_MAGICAL ME_  
today 12:30 P.M. To 4:30 P.M.

"Gilderoy Lockhart!" Bryt couldn't believe it as she started bouncing up and down, causing her ponytail to bounce against her back, "Gilderoy Lockhart's _here_! I can' believe we get to _meet _him!"

"I wish I had the money for a copy of _Magical Me_," Hermione sighed as she followed Bryt through the crowd of witches into the store. Ron and Harry lagged behind them.

"I'm not gettin' many supplies, I'll talk Dad into gettin' us copies," Bryt grinned.

Bryt and her friends grabbed a copy of _The Standard Book of Spells, Grade 2_ and made their way over to the Weasley family along the line with Mr. Watkins.

"Ah, there you are, Bryt," Mr. Watkins grinned brightly, "I was just telling Arthur here more about you. We've been havin' a great chat. Wonderful man."

Bryt and Hermione broke into a fit of giggles, though they didn't get to say anything as the man everyone had been waiting for came into view. Gilderoy Lockhart made his way to a table set in the middle of a group of pictures of himself, all grinning at the crowd. Their real counterpart flashed his own grin to the crowd, his forget-me-not blue eyes sparkling as he sat down.

"I can' believe it," Bryt whispered excitedly, bouncing on the spot, "It's _actually him_!"

Ron muttered something behind Bryt that she couldn't hear as a short man with a camera started making his way through, taking pictures.

"Out of the way, there," he snapped at Ron, pushing by rudely, "This is for the _Daily Prophet_—"

"Big deal," Ron grumbled.

"Ron!" Bryt hissed, elbowing her friend, glancing over and realizing Lockhart had heard Ron's comment for he was looking over at them. Then, Lockhart jumped to his feet and Bryt realized that he had seen Harry.

"It _can't_ be Harry Potter?" he exclaimed.

Harry was pushed forward as Lockhart moved towards them and pulled Harry back to the table and the crowd started clapping. Bryt noticed Harry's face growing red as the short photographer started taking more pictures.

"Harry's so lucky," Bryt groaned enviously as Lockhart let go of Harry's hand only to pull his arm around the boy's shoulders. She would have loved to be standing up there herself.

"Ladies and gentlemen," Lockhart called loudly and the crowd grew silent, "What an extraordinary moment this is! The perfect moment for me to make a little announcement I've been sitting on for some time!

"When young Harry here stepped into Flourish and Blotts today, he only wanted to buy my autobiography—which I shall be happy to present to him now, free of charge—"

"Lucky," Bryt groaned again, watching Harry jealously.

"He had _no idea_," Lockhart continued, "that he would shortly be getting much, much more than my book, _Magical Me_. He and his schoolmates will, in fact, be getting the real magical me. Yes, ladies and gentlemen, I have great pleasure and pride in announcing that this September, I will be taking up the post of Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry!"

Bryt let out a squeal of excitement and started jumping up and down on the spot.

"Did you hear that?!" she rushed out, "Gilderoy Lockhart himself! Teaching us at Hogwarts!"

"I can hardly wait," Ron grumbled sarcastically and Bryt turned to glare at him.

"Gilderoy Lockhart is a wonderful wizard," Hermione glared at Ron as well, "Look at all the books he's written!"

"You two need to get yer copies," Bryt spoke up, "You'll see he's great, Ron, once you read his books."

The three hurried off and Ron and Hermione both got a full set of Lockhart's books before making their way to where Harry was standing with Ginny. Bryt glared as she noticed Draco Malfoy was standing there as well.

"Oh, it's you," Ron said distastefully, "Bet you're surprised to see Harry here, eh?"

"Not as surprised as I am to see you in a shop, Weasley," Malfoy replied, "I suppose your parents will go hungry for a month to pay for all those."

"Lay off him!" Bryt snapped, staring forward, but Hermione had grabbed onto her.

Malfoy probably was thinking about the year before when Bryt had punched him in the Forbidden Forest for he seemed to take a step back when Bryt nearly pulled loose from Hermione's grasp.

"Letting this filth fight your battles now, Weasley?" Malfoy regained himself and sneered at Ron, whose face went scarlet as he tried to pull from where Harry was holding him back.

"Ron!"

Bryt seemed to instantly relax as she noticed Mr. Weasley making his way over with Fred, George, and Mr. Watkins.

"Bryt, you know better than to start fights," Mr. Watkins said, grabbing Bryt's shoulders as Hermione let her friend go.

"We were just talkin'," Bryt grumbled.

"Well, well, well—Arthur Weasley."

Bryt looked over and noticed a man who looked so similar to Draco Malfoy that there was no doubt that he was the boy's father.

"Lucius," Mr. Weasley gave a short nod.

"Busy time at the Ministry, I hear," Mr. Malfoy said simply, "All those raids...I hope they're paying you overtime?"

Mr. Malfoy reached into Ginny's cauldron and Bryt noticed he didn't grab any of the new set of Lockhart books, instead pulling out a worn copy of _A Beginner's Guide to Transfiguration_.

"Obviously not," Mr. Malfoy continued, "Dear me, what's the use of being a disgrace to the name of wizard if they don't even pay you well for it?"

"We have a very different idea of what disgraces the name of wizard, Malfoy," Mr. Weasley's face had grown a dark red.

"Clearly," Mr. Malfoy replied, his gaze turning towards Bryt's father, who was standing behind her at the moment. Bryt glared back at the man as he continued, "The company you keep, Weasley...and I thought your family could sink no lower—"

Bryt wanted to make a comment but her father held her back for Mr. Weasley had pushed forward, knocking Mr. Malfoy into a nearby bookshelf. As books fell over the two men, Fred and George started cheering and Mrs. Weasley began calling for her husband to stop. The crowd around them began trying to move out of the way, which caused more damage in knocking over more shelves and the assistant began calling for peace.

"Break it up there, gents, break it up—"

Bryt turned to see Hagrid had now come in, pulling the Mr. Malfoy and Mr. Weasley apart. Bryt grinned as she noticed Mr. Malfoy seemed to have been hit in the eye during the fight. Mr. Malfoy pulled himself from Hagrid's grip and threw Ginny's tattered book back at the girl.

"Here, girl—take your book—it's the best your father can give you."

Mr. Malfoy, then, turned to his son and the two left the shop.

"Yeh should've ignored him, Arthur," Hagrid said, "Rotten ter the core, the whole family, everyone knows that—no Malfoy's worth listenin' ter—bad blood, that's what it is—come on now—lets get outta here."

The group headed from the shop, Mr. Watkins keeping both Bryt and Hermione by him and staring at Hagrid with such a curious and frightened expression that both girls began giggling. As Hagrid left, Bryt explained to her father that the giant man was the grounds keeper at Hogwarts that she had told him about. Then, the large group made their way back to the Leaky Cauldron where Bryt told Harry and Ron goodbye before heading out to the Muggle streets with Hermione and her father.


	3. Summer Ends

"Oh no!"

Bryt looked up at Hermione's cry to see her friend sitting by her crammed-full trunk, a thick book in her hands. It was the night before they had to leave for Hogwarts and the two were trying to get their trunks packed. Obviously, Hermione was having trouble.

"What's wrong?" Bryt asked.

"I can't fit my copy of _Hogwarts: A History_ in my trunk!"

Bryt let out a sigh and resisted the urge to roll her eyes. She had thought it was something serious.

"You won' need it, you can leave it here," Bryt said. Hermione turned and gave Bryt an almost horrified expression.

"Don't need it?" she echoed, "What if I want to read it this year?"

"You've already read it," Bryt replied.

"What if I decide to read it again?"

"Why would you want to read that thick thing again?"

"You never know. Either way, I don't think I want to leave my book here," Hermione said matter-of-factly.

"Don' trust me?" Bryt raised an eyebrow.

"I don't trust your brothers," Hermione nodded to the door.

Bryt followed her gaze and noticed Mike and Drew in the doorway.

"What d'you two want?" Bryt asked.

"To see if you're done packing," Mike grinned.

"Hermione can leave her book here, we won' mess with it," Drew continued.

"Of course you won'," Bryt said simply, "Because I'll brew up a potion and turn you two into frogs if you did."

"You wouldn' do that," Mike said.

"Oh yeah?" Bryt started to get to her feet, smirking.

Mike and Drew laughed and took off down the hall. It only took Bryt a half second to rush to her door, and when she leaned out, she saw her brothers' bedroom door closing. Bryt blinked, realizing in that short time, her brothers had ran the entire length of the hallway, right past both their parents' room and a bathroom.

"They're faster than I thought," Bryt said more to herself as her mother appeared in the archway leading to the living room.

"Sofí and Julio are on the phone, Bryt," she said.

"Yes!" Bryt grinned, "I was hopin' they'd call. C'mon, 'mione."

Bryt turned and headed for the living room and took the phone from her mother. She waited for Hermione before turning on the speaker phone.

"Hey you two," Bryt grinned at the phone, "Hermione's here with me."

"Hi Hermione!" came the bubbly female voice that belonged to Bryt's friend, Sofí.

"Hello, Hermione," came Julio's voice now.

"Hello," Hermione replied, grinning, "Bryt and I were in the middle of packing. We're leaving for Hogwarts tomorrow."

"That's why we called," Sofí said happily, "Brychelle told us when she left fer school, so we wanted ta call before she left. Well, Julio actually jus' wanted to hear what Hermione sounds like. He's got it bad, if you ask me."

"Sofí Samantha García!" Julio snapped, and then continued it yelling in Spanish.

Bryt giggled. She knew enough Spanish to get by (Mr. García had taught her when she was really little) so could understand most of the conversation. Julio was insisting he didn't have a crush on Hermione, to which Sofí asked why he was speaking in Spanish, then. Bryt looked over at Hermione and started giggling even harder as she noticed her friend's face had gone a light shade of pink. She'd have to bring it up later.

"Hey, argue later," Bryt finally cut in, "Time limit, remember?"

"Okay, I'll finish later," Sofí was immediately back to the phone, dropping her argument so easily. Bryt knew Julio would still be fuming, though.

"When do you two start school?" Hermione asked over Bryt's shoulder. Obviously, she wanted to stray the conversation away from her and Julio.

"Mid-September," Julio replied instantly, and Sofí made a noise of disgust in the background, "We're goin' tomorrow to get our books."

"Oh, Sofí, I've got news that's gonna make you so jealous," Bryt said happily, the topic of books reminding her of the new Defense teacher at Hogwarts.

"Now why would I be jealous of you?" Sofí teased, "I'm taller, prettier, and funner than you are."

"It's who's teaching at Hogwarts this year," Bryt said simply, "_Gilderoy Lockhart_!"

"Yer kiddin'!" Sofí exclaimed and Julio was the one to make a noise of disgust this time.

"Bryt, that man is a fraud," he said.

"Sofí! Julio!" Mrs. García's voice came in the background, "I didn' give you two permission to call long-distance! Get off the phone now!"

"You said you asked Mom!" Julio snapped.

"And you believed it?" Sofí shot back.

"Guys!" Bryt laughed, "You should go."

"Goodbye you two," Hermione spoke up.

"Bye," both García siblings chorused before the line went dead.

"Is Sofí always like that?" Hermione asked as she and Bryt headed back to Bryt's room.

"Mostly, yeah," Bryt said, then started smirking as she went back to her trunk, "And she's not the only one who thinks someone has a crush on their pen pal."

Hermione's face went pink again and she quickly turned her back to Bryt.

"I honestly don't know what you're talking about," she said, "We should finish packing."

"Hermione, I'm not Harry or Ron," Bryt said simply, trying to get her robes to fit into her trunk, "I'm not gonna tease you endlessly. I actually think you and Julio're a good match. Despite the fact you live on different continents."

"I thought you said friends shouldn't date," Hermione turned back to Bryt now.

Bryt sighed, remembering the other day when it had been raining. Mrs. Watkins had talked the girls into watching a movie with her and Bryt had complained about the ending where the best friends got together as a couple. She claimed the movie saying a guy and girl couldn't be friends without eventually dating. She had sworn then that she'd never date a friend, which Mrs. Watkins found extremely amusing. She had said Bryt was only twelve and shouldn't be so quick to judge any relationship.

"I said _I_ wasn' gonna date a friend," Bryt reminded Hermione, "Didn' say others couldn'. Besides, you and Julio are an exception to the rule. You haven' _technically_ met, not face-to-face. And I think you might've had a crush on Julio from first letter, so he was never a friend first."

"Who was never a friend?"

Bryt and Hermione both looked up to see Drew and Mike had rematerialized at the door.

"Can't you two leave us alone for five minutes?" Bryt crossed her arms over her chest.

"We won' see you again 'til Christmas, though!" Drew whined.

"_If_ I come home for Christmas this year," Bryt replied. After last year's boring Christmas, Bryt was seriously thinking about staying at Hogwarts for Christmas this year.

"Exactly!" Mike said, "We want to spend as much time with you as we can!"

"Hermione and I're busy," Bryt got to her feet, "We gotta get our trunks packed, and we can't with you two always interruptin'."

Mike and Drew were, once again, in their room before Bryt had reached her door. She closed the door so she'd have a warning if her brothers came back, and turned back to her trunk.

"Sometimes where I wish I were an only child," Bryt sighed, going back to her trunk, "But then I think I'd miss the little freaks."

Bryt finally got the last of her clothes in her trunk and closed it. She looked over at Hermione and saw her friend was still trying to find a way to get all of her books into the trunk.

"Hermione, just leave the book here," Bryt went over to her friend, "If it'll make you happy, I'll hide it so Mike and Drew won' mess with it."

Hermione stared at her book for another minute before sighing and handing it to Bryt. Bryt hid the book in a box under her bed that held her filled diaries.

As soon as Hermione closed her trunk, there was a knock on Bryt's door. Both girls looked up as Mrs. Watkins leaned in.

"It's gettin' late, girls," she said, "We gotta get up early tomorrow."

Both girls changed into pajamas and crawled into their beds. Bryt felt like she had barely fallen asleep when Mrs. Watkins was waking the girls up the next morning. Both dressed, still half-asleep, and allowed Mr. Watkins to load their trunks and Joey's cage into the family van while Bryt and Hermione ate a quick breakfast of eggs and toast.

They managed to leave on time and were at King's Cross with almost half an hour to spare.

"I'll write closer to Christmas when I decide if I'm stayin' at Hogwarts or not," Bryt grinned as she hugged her father goodbye.

"Stay out of trouble," Mrs. Watkins said.

"Will do," Bryt grinned, taking her trolley.

With another hug to her parents, Bryt and Hermione headed through the station to the barrier between platforms nine and ten. Bryt looked at Hermione next to her, then they both went at the barrier at a run, soon finding themselves on the magical Platform 9 ¾ and staring at the scarlet Hogwarts Express.

"I wonder if Harry and Ron're here yet," Bryt said, looking around and trying to see if she could spot her friends.

Neither girl spotted Harry or Ron as they got their trunks on the train and checked every compartment. They finally settled in an empty compartment and Bryt kept her gaze out the window for any sign of the two boys.

"They're going to miss the train," Hermione said when there was only ten minutes left, "Where are they?"

"Hey, I see the Weasleys!" Bryt was on her feet as she noticed a group of people with vivid red hair among the crowd, all rushing for the train. She realized, though, that the group was one short and there wasn't anyone with black hair among them. "Wait...There's only six...I don' see Ron or Harry..."

Bryt tried to look over the group again, but they were piling onto the train in a rush. The whistle blew and the train slowly began moving and Bryt looked over at Hermione.

"What happens if a student misses the train?" she asked, worried. She hadn't seen Harry or Ron and she couldn't imagine where they could be, and why they didn't arrive with the rest of the Weasleys.

"I'm sure they work out something for the student to get to Hogwarts," Hermione said, but she sounded just as worried as Bryt, "Maybe they Apparate—"

"What?" Bryt asked.

"It's a wizard way of disappearing from one place and appearing in another," Hermione said matter-of-factly, "I'm sure that they'll bring a student to the school like that. Of course, you can't Apparate straight to Hogwarts, there are wards that prevent it. They'll probably Apparate to the village nearby."

"Hopefully," Bryt said, looking back out the window at the passing scenery. She really hoped Hermione was right and Harry and Ron would be at Hogwarts.

Because both girls were lost in thought, the ride to Hogwarts was unnaturally quiet between them. Bryt kept her gaze out the window, constantly wondering why Harry and Ron hadn't arrived with the rest of the Weasleys and if they were already at Hogwarts, waiting for the other students.

Bryt had actually fallen asleep, not waking up again until Hermione began shaking her side and telling her they were nearly there. Bryt yawned, then rubbed the back of her neck before pulling out her robes and pulling them on. Bryt and Hermione got off the train and began following the flow of students.

Bryt and Hermione both waved at Hagrid, who was gathering the first years for the trip across the lake. Then, they followed along to the several carriages pulled by creatures that resembled skeletal black horses with dragon-like heads and large, leathery wings. Bryt knew from _Magical Creatures of the World_ that they were called thestrals and she could only see them because she had seen her grandmother die in a hospital a few years before.

Bryt didn't pay much attention to the thestrals as she and Hermione climbed into the carriage, she was too preoccupied with finding out of Harry and Ron were at the castle.

"Hopefully Harry and Ron'll be waitin' at the castle," Bryt said as the carriage started along the road.

"I'm sure they will be," Hermione agreed, staring out the window.

Bryt hadn't realized how much she had missed being at Hogwarts until she and Hermione stepped through the doors into the Entrance Hall. Bryt could already feel herself grinning as she heard the already building buzz of conversations in the nearby Great Hall as she and Hermione approached the door.

Bryt immediately scanned the Gryffindor table, but didn't see Harry or Ron. She looked over and noticed Hermione looked worried. Obviously, she hadn't seen Harry or Ron, either.

"Maybe they'll show up later," Hermione said hopefully and Bryt nodded.

"We can save 'em seats," she said.

The two girls headed across the Great Hall to the Gryffindor table and sat down. Bryt kept her gaze on the door, looking for any sign of Harry or Ron. She was becoming more and more worried, especially when McGonagall brought in a stool and the Sorting Hat, the group of first years right behind. Harry and Ron still hadn't shown up.

"Maybe they're in the common room," Bryt tried to reassure herself as she looked over at Hermione, "Maybe they just ain't hungry."

"There not the only ones missing, though," Hermione whispered back, nodding to staff table.

Bryt scanned the table and suddenly was hit with a wave of dread. Snape, the Potions teacher who seemed to have a grudge against Harry, was missing. Bryt bit her lip, hoping that him being gone wasn't related to Harry and Ron missing.

"Creevey, Colin!" McGonagall's voice caught Bryt's attention and she looked back to the Sorting. Apparently, it had already started without her noticing.

A small mousy-haired boy was running to the stool, snatching the Sorting Hat from McGonagall and yanking it down over his head with such enthusiasm that Bryt was reminded of Hermione the year before.

After nearly a minute, the Sorting Hat opened its brim and shouted "GRYFFINDOR!"

Bryt applauded with the rest of her house as she scanned the line of first years. She easily spotted Ginny Weasley, her vivid red hair standing out among them. Near her was a girl with long, pale blonde hair. Bryt had noticed her because she had her wand behind her ear and she had been staring at the ceiling. It wasn't an amazed expression like most students. Instead, she seemed to be daydreaming, almost unaware of the world around her.

Bryt turned away from the Sorting, only half-paying attention as she sunk her chin into her fist, wondering where Harry and Ron could be. She kept trying to tell herself that they were fine and had made it to Hogwarts, but she couldn't figure out why they weren't at the feast.

"I really hope they're okay," Bryt whispered, turning back to the Sorting after several minutes.

"Lovegood, Luna," McGonagall called and the blonde girl who had been daydreaming seemed to skip to the stool, sitting down and letting the hat drop over her head. It was barely even a second before it shouted out "RAVENCLAW!"

"I'm sure they are," Hermione whispered back, "I bet you were right, they were just not hungry and are waiting in the common room."

"But why's Snape gone, too?" Bryt whispered.

"He could be sick," Hermione replied.

"Or maybe he quit," Bryt said hopefully.

"Weasley, Ginevra."

Bryt looked up as Ginny, the last first year to be Sorted, made her way to the stool. Bryt noticed the girl looked almost frightened as the hat dropped down on her head.

"GRYFFINDOR!" it shouted almost at once.

"Ron'll be happy to hear that," Bryt applauded with the rest of the Gryffindors as Ginny headed over, looking relieved, "I don' understand why he wouldn' wanna see his sister Sorted, though..."

As the food appeared, Bryt and Hermione both noticed that McGonagall and their headmaster, Dumbledore, left. They exchanged a surprised look as they fixed themselves plates.

"Where're they goin'?" Bryt asked.

"I don't know," Hermione shook her head.

The teachers didn't return until during desserts and Bryt noticed that Snape was with them. She also noticed that their Potions teacher looked almost fuming.

"Wow, he definitely ain't happy..." Bryt whispered, "I wonder what happened..."

The rest of the feast passed by slowly and ended with Dumbledore giving the school announcements. Then, Bryt and Hermione started towards the Gryffindor common room with the rest of their house.

"Did you hear?" a couple of students were talking up ahead of them, "Apparently Harry Potter and one of his friends crashed a flying car into the Whomping Willow. I heard they've been expelled."

Bryt and Hermione both stopped and stared at each other.

"Flyin' car?" Bryt echoed, remembering the car Ron had said his father had enchanted, "You don' think..."

"Maybe we should try and find them," Hermione whispered, "But we shouldn't stray away from our house...We don't even know the password."

Bryt thought for a second, then rushed ahead to Percy at the head of the line, tugging on his arm.

"What's the password this year?" Bryt asked, then trying to make herself look uncomfortable as she dropped her voice to a whisper, "I...er...gotta go to the bathroom and don' wanna hold everyone up..."

"Oh, it's wattlebird," Percy stared at Bryt, "And don't take too long."

Bryt nodded and slipped back through the crowd, grabbing Hermione's arm.

"Let's go," she whispered and the two slipped away from the Gryffindors and back down the hallway.

They had gone down three flights of stairs and were heading along another corridor and they still hadn't spotted Ron or Harry. Bryt was beginning to wonder if wandering through the castle was so late such a good idea. She had forgotten how big the castle was and just how easy it was to get lost.

"Where do you think they are?" Hermione asked after they went down another flight of stairs.

"I really don' know," Bryt sighed, "Maybe lookin' for them was a bad idea..."

"Let's just go back to the common room," Hermione said, "Ron and Harry could be there."

Bryt nodded and the two turned around, heading back up the stairs. They were approaching the common room and Bryt suddenly started grinning as she noticed Harry and Ron were outside the portrait. She felt a wave of relief, this meant that they hadn't been expelled.

"_There_ you are!" Hermione exclaimed rushing towards them, "Where have you _been_? The most _ridiculous_ rumors—someone said you'd been expelled for crashing a flying _car_—"

"Well, we haven't been expelled," Harry said.

"You're not telling me you _did_ fly here?" Hermione gave the three a stern look.

"You actually _flew_ here?" Bryt asked in amazement, "Did you actually crash it into a tree?"

"Yeah," Ron grinned, then it faded as he looked at Hermione's glare, "Anyway, we're tired. Do either of you know the password?"

"It's 'wattlebird'," Hermione said, "but that's not the point—"

The portrait of the Fat Lady swung open and Hermione was cut off by applause. Ron and Harry were pulled inside where it seemed the entire Gryffindor House was waiting. Hermione and Bryt climbed in after them. Hermione was absolutely fuming now.

"Brilliant!" Lee Jordan yelled loudly, "Inspired! What an entrance! Flying a car right into the Whomping Willow, people'll be talking about that one for years—"

"Why couldn't we've come in the car, eh?" Fred and George had made their way over.

Ron went red in the face and gave a weak grin. Harry suddenly nudged them and pointed towards Percy, who was trying to make his way over and there was an obvious lecture awaiting them.

"Got to get upstairs—bit tired," Harry spoke up and he and Ron started off, calling goodnight to Hermione and Bryt. Bryt returned their call and grabbed Hermione, who looked annoyed, before heading towards her dormitory.

"Man, flyin' a car to Hogwarts," Bryt sighed in envy as she and Hermione climbed the stairway.

"Do you realize what could have happened to them?" Hermione asked as they reached their room, "They could have been seriously hurt! Or even expelled!"

"Yeah, I guess you're right," Bryt sighed, changing into her pajamas, "But they weren'. And a story like that's one to brag about."

Hermione gave an annoyed huff and turned to her bed. Bryt rolled her eyes, wondering how long Hermione would fume over this. She turned back to her own bed and decided to get some sleep.


	4. Mandrakes

When morning came, Bryt was eager to start the day, wanting to catch up with Harry and Ron and hear everything about their flight to Hogwarts. As she dressed and pulled her hair back, Bryt found herself thankful that Hermione wasn't on bad terms with her, though she thought is it was only because Bryt hadn't been with Harry and Ron. Bryt doubted Hermione would be as friendly to the boys today. As the two girls went to the Great Hall and sat down for breakfast, Neville Longbottom and Seamus Finnigan, two of the girls' fellow Gryffindors and classmates, greeted the girls brightly. Bryt returned their grin as she started piling her plate with food and Hermione hid her face behind her copy of _Voyages with Vampires_.

When Bryt was half-through her breakfast, Harry and Ron finally showed up, sitting on either side of the blonde. As Bryt grinned, Hermione gave a stiff 'morning', not even lifting her head.

"She'll settle down eventually," Bryt whispered to her friends.

"Mail's due any minute," Neville said from next to them, "I think Gran's sending a few things I forgot."

Bryt glanced up at the ceiling, which mirrored the gray and gloomy sky outside, just in time to see the sea of owls swooping into sight, dropping packages and letters to various students.

"_Errol_!" Ron groaned and Bryt looked up as Ron pulled the old owl from a jug of milk and lay the unconscious owl on the table where a red envelope fell from its mouth.

"Oh no..." Ron said, seeing the envelope.

"It's all right," Hermione was poking Errol lightly, "He's still alive."

"It's not that, it's _that_," Ron pointed at the red envelope laying on the table with an expression on his face as if the letter might explode at any minute.

"Ron, it's just a letter," Bryt said.

"It's not just a letter," Ron replied, "It's a Howler."

"You'd better open it, Ron," Neville spoke up quietly, "It'll be worse if you don't. My gran sent me one once, and I ignored it and...it was horrible."

"What's so bad about a letter?" Bryt asked, looking over to Harry and Hermione, as if one of them could answer. Harry have a shrug.

"Open it," Neville spoke up again, "It'll be over in a few minutes..."

Ron reached over to the envelope that was beginning to smoke and picked it up carefully, as if he were handling explosives. Finally, he opened the envelope and Neville shoved his fingers in his ears. A second later, Bryt wished she had as well as Mrs. Weasley's amplified voice suddenly erupted from the letter, filling the Great Hall.

"—_STEALING THE CAR, I WOULDN'T HAVE BEEN SURPRISED IF THEY'D EXPELLED YOU, YOU WAIT TILL I GET HOLD OF YOU, I DON'T SUPPOSE YOU STOPPED TO THINK WHAT YOUR FATHER AND I WENT THROUGH WHEN WE SAW IT WAS GONE_—"

Bryt stared horror-struck at the screaming letter and noticed Ron was sinking into his chair next to her. Other students in the Great Hall were beginning to turn towards the Gryffindor table now.

"—_LETTER FROM DUMBLEDORE LAST NIGHT, I THOUGHT YOUR FATHER WOULD DIE OF SHAME, WE DIDN'T BRING YOU UP TO BEHAVE LIKE THIS, YOU AND HARRY COULD HAVE DIED_—"

Bryt couldn't tear her wide eyes away from the letter as her mouth hung open. There was something about the screaming that had her transfixed, despite the fact she was wishing she were anywhere else and didn't have to listen to Ron's Howler.

"—_ABSOLUTELY DISGUSTED—YOUR FATHER'S FACING AN INQUIRY AT WORK, IT'S ENTIRELY YOUR FAULT AND IF YOU PUT ANOTHER TOE OUT OF LINE WE'LL BRING YOU STRAIGHT BACK HOME_."

The letter burst into flames as the Great Hall fell deafly silent. Harry, Ron, and Bryt all sat dumbfounded as there was a few low laughs, then the Great Hall filled again with the buzz of hundreds of conversations. Bryt suddenly jumped as Hermione shut her book with a loud snap and the bushy-haired girl looked over at Ron.

"Well, I don't know what you expected, Ron," she started, "But you—"

"Don't tell me I deserved it," Ron snapped.

"I'm so glad I'm Muggleborn," Bryt found her voice finally. If she had gotten into serious trouble, at least her letter from home wasn't going to be shouting for the entire school to hear. Bryt finally pulled from her daze as Professor McGonagall began moving along the table, handing out their class schedules.

Bryt grabbed her schedule as she and her friends stood up to leave.

"Double Herbology," Bryt said as they walked, "Then Transfiguration...Yes! We have Defense Against the Dark Arts after lunch!"

"I can hardly wait," Ron grumbled sarcastically.

Bryt was about to make a reply when she noticed Sprout, the plump little witch who taught Herbology, coming towards the students, her folded arms full of bandages and a sour look on her face. Bryt suddenly grinned brightly and nudged Hermione as she spotted Gilderoy Lockhart strolling along side their Herbology teacher.

"Oh, hello there!" Lockhart called with a beaming grin, "Just been showing Professor Sprout the right way to doctor a Whomping Willow! But I don't want you running away with the idea that I'm better at Herbology than she is! I just happen to have met several of these exotic plants on my travels..."

"Greenhouse three today, chaps!" Professor Sprout snapped, which caused a rush of interest among the students. Greenhouse three was home to far more interesting and dangerous plants than they had worked with last year.

As Professor Sprout unlocked the greenhouse, Bryt headed in with her class. A second later, she turned as she heard Lockhart's voice.

"You don't mind if he's a couple of minutes late, do you, Professor Sprout?"

Lockhart was just outside the greenhouse, holding his arm out in front of Harry, who was looking a little annoyed. Bryt couldn't understand why, she would have loved to spend time with Gilderoy Lockhart. The Defense teacher grinned with a quick "That's the ticket" and closed the greenhouse door before Sprout could reply.

"Everyone over here," Sprout snapped.

Bryt hurried to a spot with Ron and Hermione and watched as their teacher took her place behind a bench covered in earmuffs of various colors. As she stood there silently for a few moments, Bryt realized she was waiting on Harry to return before she started class. It was a few minutes before the greenhouse door did open and Harry hurried over to the empty spot next to Ron.

"We'll be repotting Mandrakes today," Sprout started, "Now, who can tell me the properties of the Mandrake?"

Bryt ducked from instinct as Hermione's hand shot into the air next to her.

"Mandrake, or Mandragora, is a powerful restorative," Hermione stated, "It is used to return people who have been transfigured or cursed to their original state."

"Excellent. Ten points to Gryffindor," Sprout said and Bryt grinned at her friend, "The Mandrake forms an essential part of most antidotes. It is also, however, dangerous. Who can tell me why?"

"The cry of the Mandrake is fatal to anyone who hears it," Hermione stated after raising her hand once again.

"Precisely. Take another ten points. Now, the Mandrakes we have here are still very young."

Bryt raised an eyebrow curiously at the trays of plants Sprout had pointed out. Bryt remembered reading about Mandrakes throughout her potions book, they were indeed used in a lot of antidotes. Though she thought the purplish-green plants growing from the soil weren't very impressive and wondered how they could make any noise, let alone cry.

"Everyone take a pair of earmuffs," Sprout ordered and everyone scrambled for the earmuffs, no one wanting the pink ones.

"When I tell you to put them on, make sure your ears are _completely_ covered. When it is safe to remove them, I will give you the thumbs-up. Right—earmuffs _on_."

As Bryt clamped her earmuffs over her ears, everything went silent around her. It was such a weird feeling for her to have all sound completely cut off. Curious, she hummed a bit. It was a weird sensation, she could feel her throat vibrating, but she couldn't hear anything.

Bryt reminded herself she was supposed to be paying attention to her teacher and looked up to watch with the rest of the class as Sprout put a pair of pink earmuffs on before rolling up the sleeves of her robes and grabbing one of the plants and pulling. Where there would have been roots for a normal plant, the Mandrake had a pale green, extremely ugly baby that was apparently screaming on the top of its lungs.

"_That's_ a Mandrake?" Bryt gasped, though, like with her humming, she couldn't even hear herself.

The Herbology teacher stuck the Mandrake into a pot she had pulled out and began burying it in compost so that, once again, only the purple-green leaves were visible. Dusting off her hands, Sprout gave her students a thumbs-up, and then pulled off her earmuffs. Bryt and her classmates followed suit, Bryt letting her earmuffs hang around the back of her neck.

"As our Mandrakes are only seedlings, their cries won't kill you yet," Sprout said simply, "However, they _will_ knock you out for several hours, and as I'm sure none of you want to miss your first day back, make sure your earmuffs are securely in place while you work. I will attract your attention when it is time to pack up.

"Four to a tray—there is a large supply of pots here—compost in the sacks over there—and be careful of the Venemous Tentacula, it's teething."

As she spoke, Sprout slapped a dark red plant that had been inching over her shoulder. She set the students to work and Harry, Ron, Hermione, and Bryt crowded around one of the trays. A curly-haired Hufflepuff had become part of group next to them and had grinned at Harry.

"Justin Finch-Fletchley," he introduced himself, shaking Harry's hand, "Know who you are, of course, the famous Harry Potter...And you're Hermione Granger—always top of everything, though I hear you, Bryt Watkins, are an upcoming Potions master."

Bryt went red and grinned awkwardly as Justin shook her and Hermione's hands before he turned to Ron.

"And Ron Weasley. Wasn't that your flying car?"

Ron seemed to pretend he hadn't heard the comment. Bryt elbowed him hard in the side, which gained her a glare from her friend.

"That Lockhart's something, isn't he?" Justin continued on as they began setting up their separate trays. The people he was working with didn't seem to like much that he was ignoring the group he should be working with, "Awfully brave chap. Have you read his books? I'd have died of fear if I'd been cornered in a telephone booth by a werewolf, but he stayed cool and—zap—just _fantastic_.

"My name was down for Eron, you know. I can't tell you how glad I am I came here instead. Of course, Mother was slightly disappointed, but since I made her read Lockhart's books I think she's begun to see how useful it'll be to have a fully trained wizard in the family..."

_'Doesn' this guy ever shut up?'_ Bryt found herself thinking.

Luckily, she didn't have to listen to Justin for long. The students had to put on their earmuffs and begin work, which took a lot of attention. It turned out to be much harder than Sprout had shown. It was a fight just to get the Mandrakes out of the dirt and Bryt thought they would like to go back in, but that wasn't the case. They clawed at the students and struggled against every movement. Bryt was glad to be wearing her gloves. She was sure she'd be covered in scratches if it weren't for them.

Exhausted and covered in dirt, Bryt was relieved when class ended. She tried to brush herself off some as she followed with her friends towards the castle. Before heading to Transfiguration, she ducked into a bathroom with Hermione, Lavender, and Parvati to wash up from Herbology. Bryt was sure she wouldn't be able to concentrate much in Transfiguration, though. She was too excited about the first Defense Against the Dark Arts class of the year. She couldn't wait to see what it would be like actually learning from Gilderoy Lockhart.


	5. Troublesome Pixies

Bryt found herself wishing to wrestle the Mandrakes again once they were in Transfiguration. It had always been Bryt's worse subject, and it seemed to had gone downhill. She could barely remember anything from the year before, so she wasn't having any luck trying to transfigure a beetle into a button. She did half-manage one, but her button still had legs and went scurrying around the desk until it fell off the edge. At least Bryt had done better than Ron with his broken wand(apparently it had snapped when he and Harry crashed into the tree). All he managed to do was constantly give off smoke that smelled like rotten eggs. By the end of class, Bryt was almost sitting in the same seat as Hermione in attempts to lean away from Ron.

It was a relief when the bell rang for lunch and everyone started to head from the classroom, though Bryt hung back when Ron and Harry were still at their desks, Ron banging his wand against the desk.

"Stupid—useless—thing—"

"You need a new one, Ron," Bryt said, watching the wand set off loud bangs.

"Oh, I can imagine how that'll go," Ron rolled his eyes, "Write home for one and I'll get another Howler. _'It's your own fault your want got snapped—'_"

Bryt sighed, heading down to lunch with her friends, where Hermione was waiting with a handful of perfect buttons she had created during class. That seemed to make Ron's mood worse.

Once they were done with lunch, the four went outside into the courtyard to pass time before Defense Against the Dark Arts class. While Hermione turned her attention back to _Voyages with Vampires_, Bryt found herself drawn into Harry and Ron's conversation over Quidditch. At one point, Harry looked up and Bryt followed his gaze to the mousy-haired Colin Creevey who was clinging to a camera and staring at Harry in awe. When he noticed Bryt and Harry's gaze, though, his face went bright red.

"All right, Harry?" the boy spoke up, moving forward a step, "I'm—I'm Colin Creevey. I'm in Gryffindor, too. D'you think—would it be alright if—can I have a picture?"

"A picture?" Harry repeated.

"Aw, you have a fan!" Bryt laughed, throwing her arms around Harry's neck, laughing. Colin's eyes widened slightly as he looked at Bryt and she grinned at him, still clinging to Harry, despite his attempt to shove her off. Ron was laughing next to them.

"The picture's so I can prove I've met you," Colin went on, turning back to Harry, who had given up trying to push Bryt off him, "I know all about you. Everyone's told me. About how you survived when You-Know-Who tried to kill you and how he disappeared and everything and how you've still that a lighting scar on your forehead..." Colin looked up to Harry's bangs over his forehead, "And one boy in my dormitory said if I develop the film in the right potion, the pictures'll _move_. It's _amazing_ here, isn't it? I never knew all the odd stuff I could do was magic till I got the letter from Hogwarts. My dad's a milkman, he couldn't believe it either. So I'm taking loads of pictures to send home to him. And it'd be really good if I had one of you. Maybe one of your friends could take it and I could stand next to you? And then, you could sign it?"

"_Signed photos_? You're giving out _signed photos_, Potter?"

Bryt glared over Colin's shoulder at Draco Malfoy, who had just stopped, smirking. As usual, Crabbe and Goyle were at his side.

"Everyone line up!" Malfoy called, "Harry Potter's giving out signed photos!"

Bryt let go of Harry immediately and moved towards Malfoy, but Ron and Harry both grabbed her from behind to hold her back.

"I'm not giving out photos, Malfoy," Harry snapped, "Shut up."

"You're just jealous," Colin said.

"_Jealous_?" Malfoy echoed, though he was eying Bryt as if trying to make sure she wouldn't get loose from Harry and Ron, "Of what? I don't want a foul scar right across my head, thanks. I don't think getting your head cut open makes you that special, myself."

"Lemmego," Bryt growled in one word, fighting against her friends' grasps.

"Eat slugs, Malfoy," Ron snapped.

"Be careful, Weasley," Malfoy smirked, now seeming to ignore Bryt since she was being restrained at the moment. Bryt doubted he would be so cocky if her friends would only let her go for one second. "You don't want to start any trouble or your Mommy'll have to come and take you away from school." Malfoy started imitating Mrs. Weasley's shrill Howler, "_'If you put another toe out of line'_—"

"_Lemmego_!" Bryt growled again, yanking harder. She could feel Harry and Ron's fingertips digging into her arms now.

"Weasley would like a signed photo, Potter," Malfoy continued, "It'd be worth more than his family's whole house—"

Bryt felt Ron let go of her arm, which allowed her to pull free from Harry. She started for Malfoy, who stumbled back momentarily.

"What's all this, what's all this?"

Bryt spun around and nearly lost her balance and saw Gilderoy Lockhart heading over towards them.

"Who's giving out signed photos?" he asked with a grin, then threw an arm around Harry's shoulders, "Shouldn't have asked! We meet again, Harry!"

Bryt's anger for Malfoy was forgotten instantly as she grumbled jealously while Harry's face went red and held an expression as if he didn't want to be there. Bryt couldn't understand why, she would love to have Lockhart giving her that attention.

"Come on, then, Mr. Creevey," Lockhart grinned, "A double portrait, can't do better than that, and we'll _both_ sign it."

Colin snapped a picture right as the bell rang and Lockhart started to lead Harry off. Bryt followed with students along side Ron and Hermione.

"Harry's so lucky," Bryt groaned, then noticed Ron rolling his eyes and she gave him a glare.

"What?" she asked.

"You," Ron replied, "You're obsessed with Lockhart."

"Am not," Bryt snapped as they reached class, then to Hermione, "Let's sit up front."

Leaving Ron to sit with Harry in the back of the class, Bryt and Hermione moved their way towards the front of the class and sat down. Once everyone was in their seats, Lockhart cleared his throat for silence, then picked up Neville's copy of _Travels with Trolls_, pointing to his own picture on the front.

"Me," he grinned with a wink, "Gilderoy Lockhart, Order of Merlin, Third Class, Honorary Member of the Dark Force Defense League, and five-time winner of _Witch Weekly's_ Most-Charming-Smile Award—but I don't talk about that. I didn't get rid of the Bandon Banshee by _smiling_ at her!"

A few people gave weak smiles and Bryt exchanged a grin with Hermione.

"I see you've all bought a complete set of my books—well done. I thought we'd start today with a little quiz. Nothing to worry about—just to check how well you've read them, how much you've taken in—"

Bryt straightened some in her seat as Lockhart passed out test papers before heading back to the front of the class.

"You have thirty minutes—start—_now_!"

Bryt grabbed her quill, looking at the test:

_1. What is Gilderoy Lockhart's favorite color?  
2. What is Gilderoy Lockhart's secret ambition?  
3. What, in your opinion, is Gilderoy Lockhart's greatest achievement to date?_

There were fifty-one more questions over Lockhart, ending with:

_54. When is Gilderoy Lockhart's birthday, and what would be his ideal gift?_

Bryt grinned brightly and almost laughed as she easily recalled the answers to the questions, writing quickly. She didn't even need the full half-hour to finish. She had been reading the books countless times in the past six months, she knew most by heart. When she put her quill down, it seemed the only person who had finished before her was Hermione.

The half-hour ended soon enough and Lockhart collected the papers, going through them slowly.

"Tut, tut—hardly any of you remembered that my favorite color is lilac. I say so in _Year with the Yeti_. And a few of you need to read _Wanderings with Werewolves_ more carefully—I clearly state in chapter twelve that my ideal birthday gift would be harmony between all magic and non-magic peoples—though I wouldn't say no to a large bottle of Ogden's Old Firewhisky!"

Bryt was sitting up in her chair, watching Lockhart closely with a grin, then she straightened even further when he mentioned her and Hermione's names.

"Misses Hermione Granger and Bryt Watkins both knew my secret ambition is to rid the world of evil and market my own range of hair-care potions—good girls! In fact..." Bryt grinned brightly as Lockhart looked over their papers, "Full marks, both of you! Girls?"

Bryt raised her hand quickly, Hermione's came up slower, shaking slightly.

"Excellent!" Lockhart grinned, "Quite excellent! Take ten points for Gryffindor! And so—to business—"

Bryt exchanged a bright grin with Hermione as Lockhart pulled a large, covered cage from behind his desk. Bryt's grin faded again, cocking her head.

"Now—be warned!" Lockhart began, "It is my job to arm you against the foulest creatures known to wizardkind! You may find yourselves facing your worst fears in this room. Know only that no harm can befall you whilst I am here. All I ask is that you remain calm."

Bryt straightened herself up more, staring at the cage with interest, her mind going through the long list of creatures she had memorized details about.

"I must ask you not to scream," Lockhart's voice was barely a whisper now, "It might provoke them." Lockhart yanked off the cover dramatically. "Yes! _Freshly caught Cornish pixies_."

Seamus gave a snorting laugh from behind Bryt. Lockhart glanced over at him.

"Yes?" he asked with a smile.

"Well, they're not—they're not very—_dangerous_, are they?"

Bryt had to agree, staring at the eight-inch-high, electric blue creatures in the cage. All books she read claimed that pixies were mischief-makers, nothing more. Not really creatures that would be considered dangerous. The ones in the cage seemed ready for mischief now, rocking the cage on the table and giving off their high-pitched gibberish of talking.

"Don't be so sure!" Lockhart spoke up, "Devilish tricky little blighters they can be! Right, then...Let's see what you make of them!"

Lockhart opened the cage and disaster struck. The pixies shot in all different directions, destroying the room like a hurricane. Bryt tried to duck under her desk with Hermione, but a couple of the pixies had grabbed onto her hair. She tried to reach back over her shoulders to swat them away, but her ponytail was long enough that the pixies were just out of reach. Hermione came out from under the desk and knocked the pixies away with a book and Bryt rubbed the back of her head. She was beginning to understand why Lockhart had said pixies could be dangerous.

"Come on now—round them up, round them up, they're only pixies!" Lockhart called, pulling out his wand, "_Peskipiksi Pesternomi!_"

A pixie grabbed Lockhart's wand, throwing it out the window. The bell rang and students started rushing for the door, Bryt and Hermione among them. Lockhart was to the door before them, Ron and Harry still in the room as well.

"Well, I'll ask you four to just nip the rest of them back into their cage," he said, shutting the door behind him.

"Can you _believe_ him?" Ron yelled, swatting away a pixie trying to bite his ear.

"He's givin' us hands-on experience," Bryt said, swatting away a pixie going for her hair again. Hermione started using a Freezing Charm, stuffing the pixies back into the cage.

"_Hands on_?" Harry shot back, barely missing grabbing a pixie nearby, "He didn't have a clue what he was doing—"

"Rubbish," Hermione cut in, "You've read his books—look at all those amazing things he's done—"

"He _says_ he's done," Ron growled.

Bryt glared at Ron as they got the last of the pixies locked away.

"Pixies were a good choice, anyway," Bryt defended, "We're only second years, Lockhart knows better than to give us anythin' more dangerous to work with."

"I'll say it again, Bryt," Ron said as they left the classroom, "You're obsessed with Lockhart."

"Am not," Bryt shot back, crossing her arms over her chest.


	6. Backfired Curse

As the next week passed, Bryt noticed that whenever Lockhart started down a hallway, Harry would suddenly disappear behind something, which she found annoying. She couldn't understand why Harry always tried to avoid their teacher. Someone Bryt would have gladly avoided, though, was Colin Creevey. He seemed to always show up between their classes, wanting to say hi to Harry, and always carrying his camera. It always made Bryt feel self-conscious about her charmed Polaroid camera, that she had received for Christmas the year before, that was always with her, usually in her school bag with her books. At least she could tell herself that she wasn't constantly taking pictures of everything she passed.

Bryt awoke at the same time as Hermione on Saturday morning, glad for the weekend. Both girls dressed and Bryt pulled back her hair before following Hermione down into the common room. It wasn't long before Ron appeared from the stairs to the boys' dormitories.

"Where's Harry?" Bryt asked.

"Wood's got the Quidditch team practicing already," Ron explained.

"Let's grab some breakfast and go watch, then," Bryt grinned, heading out of the common room with Hermione and Ron right behind.

The three went to the Great Hall and grabbed several pieces of toast from the table before heading outside into the misty morning. They made their way straight to the Quidditch field, noticing it was empty. The three guessed the team was in the locker rooms so they went and sat in the stands to eat. Bryt noticed Colin was sitting in the stands as well, his camera gripped into his hands. Bryt tried not to look over at him, hoping he wouldn't decide to come talk.

Several minutes later, Bryt noticed the Gryffindor Quidditch team coming out of the locker room, all carrying their brooms.

"Aren't you finished yet?" Ron called out when Harry had looked over towards them.

"Haven't even started," Harry called back, "Wood's been teaching us new moves."

"Good thing we brought food," Bryt giggled as she watched the Quidditch team kick off into the air, Harry, Fred, and George beginning a race around the stadium.

As Bryt watched her friends race, she kept hearing a clicking noise and turned to see Colin with his camera raised, constantly taking one picture after another.

"Look this way, Harry!" Colin called, "This way!"

Bryt rolled her eyes, turning away, trying to resist the strong urge to go and throw Colin's camera in the lake. Instead, she looked out to the field where the team seemed distracted. Looking down, she saw why. The Slytherin Quidditch team had shown up.

"I smell trouble," Bryt said as the Gryffindor team landed and Wood started for the Slytherins.

"Let's go," Hermione spoke up, heading down the stands.

Bryt and Ron followed right behind, heading across the field to the group.

"Oh, Look," Flint, the Slytherin captain seemed to notice them, "A field invasion."

"What's happening?" Ron asked, "Why aren't you playing? And what's _he_ doing here?" Ron ended with a glare towards Malfoy, who Bryt noticed was wearing Slytherin Quidditch robes.

"I'm the new Slytherin Seeker, Weasley," Malfoy said smugly, "Everyone's just been admiring the brooms my father's bought our team."

Bryt couldn't stop herself, she started laughing.

"Couldn' stand that Harry's the youngest Seeker, could you?" she smirked, "And, of course, you don' have the talent to get on a team yourself, so you just got your dad to buy your way in."

Malfoy's expression changed sharply as he glared at Bryt.

"No one asked your opinion, you filthy little Mudblood."

Bryt blinked, but knew just by the tone and the Gryffindor's reactions that she had just been called something fowl. The Gryffindors had started yelling at once, Fred and George started for Malfoy, to be stopped by Flint, and Ron had yanked his broken wand from from his robes.

"You'll pay for that one, Malfoy!" Ron snapped.

Working with a broken wand, the curse backfired with a loud bang. A flash of green light hit Ron in the stomach, knocking him backwards onto the grass. Bryt immediately hurried over, kneeling down.

"Ron, you idiot!" she snapped, "Are you all right?"

Ron started to answer, but as he opened his mouth, he gave a loud burp and several slugs fell from his mouth. Bryt, on instinct, leaned back with a disgusted look as the Slytherins erupted into laughter. Reacting in anger, Bryt jumped to her feet and marched right to Malfoy, slugging him in the face. Malfoy stumbled backwards, his hands over his nose, as he stared at Bryt in shock. The rest of the Quidditch team had stopped laughing as well.

"I bet you wouldn' be laughin' if _you_ were throwin' up slugs!" Bryt shouted, reaching for her wand.

"Bryt!" Hermione had come over, grabbing Bryt's arm, "We have to help Ron."

"We'd better get him to Hagrid's," Harry spoke up, "It's nearest."

Bryt nodded, glaring at Malfoy again before she turned away and went over to Ron, still fuming. Hermione and Harry got Ron to his feet as he burped up more slugs. Bryt followed them, clutching her fists. At least the Slytherins weren't laughing behind them anymore. The quartet had barely gotten to the stands, though, when Colin came running from his seat.

"What happened, Harry?" he asked, "What happened? Is he ill? But you can cure him, can't you?"

Bryt was about to snap at Colin to leave when Ron burped up another mouthful of slugs. That seemed to completely fascinate Colin as he started to raise his camera.

"Oooh...Can you hold him still, Harry?"

"Move it!" Bryt snapped, grabbing Colin's camera and shoving it down before heading back to her friends. She knew she should have been nicer, but she didn't care. She had little patience for someone who thought one of her friends burping up slugs was fascinating.

"Nearly there, Ron," Hermione spoke up when they got in view of Hagrid's small cabin, "You'll be all right in a minute—almost there—"

As they neared, the door to Hagrid's house opened and Lockhart came out. Harry immediately led Bryt and Hermione away to behind a bush, pulling Ron along. For once, Bryt didn't mind. She didn't know how they'd explain to one of their teachers why Ron was puking slugs at the moment.

"It's a simple matter if you know what you're doing!" Lockhart was saying loudly, speaking to Hagrid, "If you need help, you know where I am! I'll let you have a copy of my book, I'm surprised you haven't already got one—I'll sign one tonight and send it over. Well, goodbye!"

Once Lockhart was out of sight, Harry started forward again and Hermione helped him take Ron over to Hagrid's door and knocked. The door opened to reveal Hagrid, who looked annoyed, though his expression changed when he saw the group of friends.

"Bin wonderin' when you'd come ter see me—come in, come in—thought you mighta bin Professor Lockhart back again—"

Harry and Hermione got Ron through the door and into a chair. Bryt perched herself on the arm of the chair, though there could probably be enough room in Hagrid's large furniture for her and Ron to both sit comfortably in it. Harry went into a quick explanation of what had happened to Ron.

"Better out than in," Hagrid said, putting a copper basin in front of Ron, "Get 'em all up, Ron."

"I don't think there's anything to do except wait for it to stop," Hermione said as Bryt patted Ron's back when he leaned over the basin to burp up more slugs, "That's a difficult curse to work at the best of times, but with a broken wand—"

"What did Lockhart want with you, Hagrid?" Harry asked as Fang started slobbering on him.

"Givin' me advice on getting' kelpies out of a well," Hagrid didn't seem pleased with Lockhart being around, "Like I don' know. An' bangin' on about some banshee he banished. If one word of it was true, I'll eat my kettle."

"It has to be true, Hagrid," Bryt said defensively, "He's written all those books."

"Right," Hermione added, "Besides, Professor Dumbledore obviously thought he was the best man for the job—"

"He was the _on'y_ man for the job," Hagrid cut in, "And I mean the _on'y_ one. Gettin' very difficult ter find anyone fer the Dark Arts job. People aren't too keen ter take it on, see. They're starin' to think it's jinxed. No one's lasted long fer a while now. So tell me..." Hagrid nodded to Ron. "Who was he tryin' ter curse?"

"Malfoy," Bryt spoke up, "He called me a 'Mudblood' or somethin'."

"He didn'!" Hagrid growled as Ron burped up more slugs. Bryt started rubbing his back again.

"He did," Hermione said, "But what does it mean? I could tell it was really rude, of course—"

"It's about the most insulting thing he could think of," Ron re-emerged from the basin, "Mudblood's a really foul name for someone who is Muggleborn—you know, non-magic parents. There are some wizards—like Malfoy's family—who think they're better than everyone else because they're what people call pure-blood. I mean, the rest of us know it doesn't make any difference at all. Look at Neville Longbottom—he's pure-blood and he can hardly stand a cauldron the right way up."

"An' there's not a single potion invented that our Bryt can' do," Hagrid said with a grin, "Nor a spell our Hermione can' manage."

Bryt and Hermione both went red and Bryt ducked her head slightly.

"It's a disgusting thing to call someone," Ron said, reaching a shaky hand up to wipe his forehead, "Dirty blood, see. Common blood. It's ridiculous. Most wizards these days are half-blood anyway. If we hadn't married Muggles, we'd've died out."

"Well, I don' blame yeh fer tryin' ter curse him, Ron," Hagrid spoke loudly because Ron had started burping up more slugs, "Bu' maybe it was a good thing yer wand backfired. 'Spect Lucius Malfoy would've come marchin' up ter school if yeh'd cursed his son. Least yer not in trouble."

"Except for throwin' up slugs," Bryt pointed out, watching Ron closely.

"Harry," Hagrid said suddenly and Bryt looked over towards him, "Gotta bone ter pick with yeh. I've heard you've bin givin' out signed photos. How come I haven't got one?"

"I have _not_ been giving out signed photos!" Harry said, furious, "If Lockhart's still spreading that around—"

Harry trailed off as Hagrid started laughing.

"I'm on'y jokin'," he said, giving Harry a pat on the back, which caused Bryt to laugh when her friend nearly went head-first into Hagrid's table, "I knew yeh hadn't really. I told Lockhart yeh didn' need teh. Yer more famous than him without tryin'."

"Bet he didn't like that," Harry said. Bryt noticed he was rubbing his jaw and wondered why, until she saw a piece of Hagrid's treacle fudge in Harry's hand.

"Don' think he did," Hagrid grinned, "An' then I told him I'd never read one o' his books an' he decided ter go. Treacle fudge, Ron?"

"No thanks," Ron shook his head weakly, "Better not risk it."

"Come an' see what I've bin growin'," Hagrid stood up and started for the door.

Bryt stood with her friends and followed Hagrid to the small vegetable patch behind the grounds keeper's house. Sitting there were a dozen gigantic pumpkins that more resembled large orange boulders.

"Wow," Bryt breathed, taking in the sight.

"Gettin' on well, aren't they?" Hagrid seemed happy with his pumpkins, "Fer the Halloween feast...should be big enough by then."

"What've you been feeding them?" Harry asked.

Hagrid glanced around before turning back to the friends, "Well, I've bin givin' them—you know—a bit o' help—"

Bryt noticed Harry glancing at something and she followed his gaze to a pink umbrella leaning against the edge of Hagrid's cabin. Bryt guessed that's where Hagrid's snapped-in-half wand was. Harry had told Bryt, Ron, and Hermione the year before that Hagrid had been expelled from Hogwarts and wasn't allowed to do magic, but Dumbledore gave him leeway sometimes.

"An Engorgement Charm, I suppose?" Hermione's tone was torn between being impressed and disappointed, "Well, you've done a good job on them."

"That's what yer little sister said," Hagrid turned to Ron, "Met her jus' yesterday. Said she was lookin' round the grounds, but I reckon she was hopin' she might run inter someone else at my house." Hagrid grinned and winked at Harry. "If yeh ask me, _she_ wouldn' say no ter a signed—"

"Oh, shut up," Harry cut in. Bryt and Ron were laughing, Ron spewing out more slugs.

"Watch it!" Hagrid cried out, pulling Ron away from the pumpkins. Bryt laughed more at Ron's expression over being suddenly yanked back.

The quartet stayed with Hagrid until almost noon before deciding to head back to the castle for lunch. By that time, Ron only hiccuped up an occasional small slug and Bryt felt he'd be back to normal by the end of the day. Ready to eat, Bryt quickened her pace as they got inside the castle, but McGonagall seemed to have been waiting for them.

"There you are, Potter, Weasley, Watkins," she said, moving towards the foursome, "You three will do your detentions this evening."

"What'd I do?" Bryt asked, shocked. She knew Harry and Ron had detention for the flying car, but she hadn't heard anything about her needing to do detention.

"I have reports from seven Slytherins that you punched Mr. Malfoy on the Quidditch pitch this morning," McGonagall said sternly.

"But—"

"Nothing gives you permission to attack another student, Miss Watkins," McGonagall cut in, "You and Mr. Weasley will be serving detention by polishing the silver in the trophy room with Mr. Filch. And no magic—elbow grease."

Bryt and Ron gulped in unison, exchanging am almost frightened look. The last thing Bryt wanted was to spend an evening with Hogwarts' most hated caretaker, and it was obvious Ron felt the same way.

"And you, Potter, will be helping Professor Lockhart answer his fan mail," McGonagall continued.

"Oh n—Professor, can't I go to and do the trophy room, too?" Harry asked.

"Certainly not," McGonagall said, raising an eyebrow disapprovingly, "Professor Lockhart requested you particularly. Eight o'clock sharp."

Bryt found herself not as hungry as a few moments ago as she sulked into the Great Hall with her friends. Harry and Ron were in just as bad of a mood as her, but Hermione held an expression that told them she thought they got what they deserved.

"Filch'll have us there all night," Ron groaned, "No magic! There must be about a hundred cuts in that room. I'm no good at Muggle cleaning."

"Good thing I am, then," Bryt spoke up, "I used to help my mom all the time." Bryt gave a sigh, starting to fix herself a plate. "I'd much rather spend all afternoon with Professor Lockhart, though..."

"I'd swap anytime," Harry spoke up and Bryt gave him a weird look. Who would willingly give up the chance to spend time with Gilderoy Lockhart?

The thought of her detention had Bryt dreading for Saturday night, yet, somehow, the afternoon went by too quickly. As eight o'clock approached, Bryt sighed and headed for the trophy room with Ron. Filch was waiting for them, along with his cat, Mrs. Norris.

The night was long and tiring. Bryt and Ron had to scrub and polish each trophy there while listening to Filch carry on about old tortures that he wished were still in practice for detentions. Any time Ron and Bryt tried to start a conversation with each other to pass the time, Filch would bark at them to keep quiet and work, and then make them repolish whichever trophy was in their hands, no matter how much it was already shining. They soon gave up on trying to talk.

Then, Bryt ended up getting the bulk of the work after Ron had to reclean a Special Award for Services to the School when he burped up a mouthful of slugs all over it. Bryt would have helped Ron, but she knew Filch would just give them more work if she tried.

It was well after midnight when Filch finally seemed satisfied enough with the two's work to let them leave. Both hurried from the room before Filch could change his mind and started the long walk up to their common room.

"I don' think I've ever been this sore in my life," Bryt groaned, rubbing her arm, "Gonna be a miracle if I'll even be able to lift my wand tomorrow mornin'."

"At least you didn't have to clean all that slime off that Special Services award," Ron grumbled back, "I didn't think I'd ever get that off."

"I would have helped, y'know," Bryt said, "But you know Filch would've started yellin' and probably kept us there even longer, sayin' we had to clean 'em all again."

"True," Ron sighed as they got to the empty Gryffindor common room.

The two said good night, guessing that Harry had already gone to bed, and Bryt headed up to her dormitory. The other girls were already asleep so Bryt changed quietly and slipped into her bed, asleep almost instantly.


	7. Unhappy Halloween

October brought with it the chilly weather that Bryt wasn't sure she would ever get use to. She was one of many who had ended up with a cold and had to take a Pepperup potion from the school nurse, Madam Pomfrey. Even though it made her feel better, it left Bryt with steam coming out of her ears for hours, which Ron and Harry found very amusing. Ron had even stolen Bryt's camera and took a picture of her, then stole the picture to keep Bryt from ripping it in half. Bryt swore she'd find a way to get revenge eventually.

Because of that, Bryt had almost refused to help Ron with his Potions homework one Saturday, a couple of days before Halloween, but decided against it since she had finished all her work already and there was nothing else to do on the dark, rainy day. Now, she was sitting with Ron in the common room, occasionally giving him answers and pointing out his mistakes as she looked over his paper while he wrote. The entire time, Hermione made disapproving huffing noises and occasionally glared at Bryt from over the top of her book, long-since giving up on talking Bryt out of her idea of 'help' with homework.

They weren't the only ones in the common room that evening. People were scattered all around in conversations and doing homework. Fred and George were trying to feed a salamander they had taken from their Care of Magical Creatures class. A group of curious students were around them and Bryt was trying to ignore what they were doing to the creature, focusing her mind on helping Ron.

Bryt was just pointing to an error Ron made, giving him the right answer, when Harry came in unusally late from practice (after all, Fred and George were in the common room already), wet and dripping with mud. He waved over at the group before disappearing up to the boys' dormitories and came back down a little later in a dry change of clothes.

"You'll never believe the invitation we just got for Halloween," Harry said when he sat down, "Nearly Headless Nick invited all of us to his deathday party."

"A deathday party?" Hermione echoed, "I bet there aren't many living people who can say they've been to one of those—it'll be fascinating!"

"Sounds creepy to me," Bryt mumbled, "Not to mention depressin'."

"Yeah, why would anyone want to celebrate the day they died?" Ron grumbled, fixing another mistake that Bryt had pointed out on his paper.

There was suddenly a loud bang and Bryt jerked her head up in time to see the salamander shoot into the air, giving off sparks. She stared almost horror-struck as the poor creature shot around the room, shooting orange stars from its mouth before disappearing into the fire, which gave off even more explosions. For once, she wasn't annoyed with Percy for screaming himself hoarse at Fred and George over their pranks. At least, she noticed, as she looked back at the fire, the salamander wasn't severely hurt. In fact, now that he was in the safety of flames, the creature looked very content.

After that day, Bryt was dreading Halloween. She was wanting to go to the feast with the rest of the school and enjoy the decorations of Hagrid's shack-sized pumpkins carved into lanterns and the live bats flying around. After all, she had missed the feast completely last year because she was trying to talk to Hermione, only to get trapped in a bathroom by a troll.

Harry seemed just as eager to get out of the deathday party.

"A promise is a promise," Hermione kept saying.

"But _I_ didn' make the promise,"Bryt would always grumble in reply, "Harry did."

But at seven o'clock on Halloween, Bryt was walking with her friends right past the crowded Great Hall and went into the dungeons of the castle. Bryt was regretting going even more as she stared at the dim lights of the candles leading the way to Nearly Headless Nick's party.

By the time they reached the room, Bryt had her robes pulled tightly around her against the cold and she was still shivering slightly, which was more do to the eerily screeching noise that was drawing closer.

"Is that supposed to be _music_?" Ron whispered.

No one answered because they had spotted the Gryffindor ghost, Nearly Headless Nick, standing outside the room's door that was draped in black velvet cloths. Like all the ghosts, Nearly Headless Nick was a transparent white color. His long, curly hair was visible under a plumed hat and he wore a tunic that had a ruff. Bryt knew that was to hide the fact that only half an inch of skin kept Nearly Headless Nick's head on his shoulders.

"My dear friends," Nearly Headless Nick greeted the four in a mournful voice, "Welcome, welcome...so pleased you could come..."

Nearly Headless Nick motioned for them to head inside and Bryt followed her friends slowly, still wishing she were upstairs at the feast. She became even more uncomfortable at the sight of hundreds of ghosts, most of which were dancing to the horrible excuse for music that was being played by a ghostly band on one side of the room. Even after being at the school a year, Bryt still didn't like the school ghosts much. She blamed it on the countless ghost stories she heard before finding out she was a witch. Then there was the fact she hadn't had many pleasant encounters with the school ghosts. In her first week, she had seen how Nearly Headless Nick had gotten his name, and had a nasty encounter with a ghost haunting a second floor bathroom.

Bryt tightened her robes around herself more and shivered, her breath white in the air. She felt like she was standing in the middle of a snowstorm.

"Shall we have a look around?" Harry asked.

"Careful not to walk through anyone," Ron spoke up as they started around the edge of the room.

Bryt tried to avoid looking at the ghosts, she hated being there, but she still stayed because of her friends. Bryt suddenly stopped short as one ghost caught her eye, though, and she stared at the ghost of a squat girl with long hair and thick glasses.

"Oh no," Hermione spoke up and Bryt knew she saw the ghost, too, "Turn back, turn back, I don't want to talk to Moaning Myrtle—"

"Who?" Harry asked as they moved in the other direction.

"Moanin' Myrtle," Bryt said, "One of the girls' bathrooms has been out-of-order all year 'cause she wails and cries in there, floodin' the place a lot when she has a tantrum. Not that anyone would go use the bathroom there with her cryin' all the time..."

"Wait a second, she haunts a _bathroom_?" Ron asked.

"Yeah," Bryt shivered, "Had a really nasty experience with her last year, just leave it at that."

Bryt looked around, then noticed a long table covered in black velvet, and on top of that was silver platters holding food.

"Great, I'm starvin'," Bryt grinned, heading over, only to stop short and throw her hand over her nose against the smell that just hit her.

It was food, but all of it was either rotten, burnt beyond recognition, or covered in maggots or mold. The only thing Bryt could recognize was a large, tombstone-shaped gray cake that looked just as unappetizing as the rest. Written across the cake were the words:

Sir Nicholas De Mimsy-Porpington  
Died 31st October, 1492

Bryt's stomach started churning over the smell and she felt as if she might throw up if she dared to open her mouth, so she kept her hands clamped firmly over her face. She watched in disgust as a ghost crouched down so his head was level with the table and he walked through it with his mouth held open.

"Can you taste it if you walk through it?" Hermione asked and Bryt was wondering how she could manage not to get sick from the smell.

"Almost," the ghost sighed, drifting off.

"I expect they've let it rot to give it a stronger flavor," Hermione pinched her nose and leaned closer to the table. Bryt gagged just thinking about being that close, but she forced herself to get her mouth tightly shut.

"Can we move?" Ron asked, "I feel sick."

Relief rushed through Bryt, at least she wasn't alone in her nausea over the so-called food. The four had just turned and stepped away from the table, though, when Peeves the Poltergeist suddenly swept in front of them from under the table.

"Hello, Peeves," Harry said warily.

"Nibbles?" Peeves held out a bowl of fungus-covered peanuts and Bryt gagged, turning away and keeping her hands over her mouth. If she managed to make it through the party without getting sick, it was going to be a miracle.

"No thanks," Hermione spoke up.

"Heard you talking about poor Myrtle," Peeves smirked, "_Rude_ you was about poor Myrtle. OY MYRTLE!!"

Bryt cringed. The last thing she wanted was to have Myrtle around, especially if the oversensitive ghost heard what they were saying earlier.

"Peeves, keep your mouth shut, please," Bryt said, surprised that she was able to open her mouth without getting sick, though her voice was more like a low croak at the moment, "She'll just—"

"Hello, Myrtle," Hermione cut in with a fake grin.

"What?" Myrtle replied in a gloomy voice.

"Good to see you out of your bathroom," Bryt said weakly. With her back to the food, the smell wasn't as strong at least. Myrtle gave an odd sniffle in reply to Bryt's comment.

"Miss Watkins was talking about you—" Peeves started, but Hermione cut in.

"She was just saying—how nice you look tonight."

Myrtle didn't seem to believe it as her gaze went to Bryt.

"You're making fun of me," she said and Bryt knew instantly she was going to start crying again.

"No, I wasn'," Bryt shook her head so hard that her pigtails whipped around and in front of her.

"Don't lie to me," Myrtle wailed, crying now, "D'you think I don't know what people call me behind my back? Fat Myrtle! Ugly Myrtle! Miserable, moaning, moping Myrtle!"

"You've forgotten pimply," Peeves whispered to Myrtle.

The gloomy ghost began sobbing and flew from the dungeon, Peeves right behind her, throwing peanuts at her and chanting "Pimply! Pimply!"

"Great," Bryt mumbled sarcastically, sighing. Then, she noticed Nearly Headless Nick heading over to them.

"Enjoying yourselves?"

"Oh yes," the four replied, though it was the furthest thing from the truth.

"Not a bad turnout," Nearly Headless Nick said proudly, "The Wailing Widow came all the way up from Kent...It's nearly time for my speech, I'd better go warn the orchestra..."

He didn't get a chance for the band had stopped playing at that moment. Bryt gave an inward sigh of relief, enjoying the silence that had fallen over the dungeon after a hunting horn sounded in the distance.

"Oh, here we go," Nearly Headless Nick didn't seemed pleased with the horn.

Bryt suddenly yelped and jumped back slightly as a dozen ghost headless horsemen came through the wall, riding on ghost horses. The crowd began clapping, and Bryt wondered why they thought it was a big deal. She, personally, was unnerved by it all.

Bryt was trying to look anywhere but at the headless horsemen, but she found herself staring at them anyway as a large one up front had stopped the group in the middle of the room and jumped off his horse, then immediately held his head high above him. The room fill with laughter, though Bryt wrinkled her nose slightly and rubbed her arms. The ghost made his way over towards Nearly Headless Nick, dropping his head onto his shoulders.

"Nick! How are you? Head still hanging in there?" the ghost laughed, giving Nearly Headless Nick a hard pat on the back.

"Welcome, Patrick," Nick replied shortly.

Patrick grinned, then spotted Bryt, Hermione, Harry, and Ron.

"Live 'uns!" he gasped in fake astonishment, giving a jump so that his head fell off his shoulders. Bryt cringed while the crowd started laughing.

"Very amusing," Nearly Headless Nick grumbled.

"Don't mind Nick!" Bryt sunk back slightly from the shouting head on the floor, "Still upset we won't let him join the Hunt! But I mean to say—look at the fellow—"

"I think," Harry suddenly spoke up and Bryt looked over at him, "Nick's very—frightening and—er—"

Patrick's head gave a laugh. "Bet he asked you to say that!"

"If I could have everyone's attention," Nearly Headless Nick suddenly called loudly, starting across the room towards a podium, "It's time for my speech!"

Nick cleared his throat once he was behind the podium. "My late lamented lords, ladies, and gentlemen, it is my great sorrow—"

The Headless Hunt began playing a game of Head Hockey at that moment and Nearly Headless Nick was completely forgotten by the crowd, no matter how hard he tried to get their attention back.

"Can we leave, please?" Bryt asked weakly, rubbing her arms, "I'm freezin', hungry, and completely freaked out about all of this. Next time you wanna go to a deathday party, Harry, leave me _out_."

"There won't be a next time," Harry whispered, "Let's go."

The four turned and hurried unnoticed from the room, then up the stairs towards the Great Hall.

"Maybe we can still catch dessert," Bryt said, her stomach growling over the idea. Now that she was away from the putrid smell and the ghosts at the party, her appetite was coming back and she was beginning to feel better.

Bryt turned suddenly and noticed Harry was standing still, his hand pressed against the stone wall and his eyes darting around the hallway.

"Harry?" Bryt asked.

"It's that voice again—shut up a minute—"

Bryt blinked, remembering the day after their detentions when Harry told her, Ron, and Hermione about a voice he had heard while serving detention with Lockhart. Then, Bryt had just guessed his mind was playing tricks on him because he was tired, but she hadn't said as much.

"Listen!" Harry said suddenly.

Bryt stared at Harry, straining her ears, but she couldn't hear anything at all. She was about to say so when Harry looked up.

"This way!" he said, taking off at a run up the stairs.

Bryt, Ron, and Hermione exchanged a confused look before starting off after Harry. The sounds of the Great Hall filled Bryt's ears as she passed and she once again longed to go join the feast, but she ignored her stomach and followed Harry. At least the run was warming her up from the freezing feeling she had in the dungeon.

"Harry—" Bryt started again when they stopped on the first floor.

"SHH!" Harry cut her off quickly.

Bryt blinked, trying to hear. Again, there was nothing but silence. She looked over at Ron and Hermione and noticed they looked just as confused as her. At least she wasn't alone, they couldn't hear the voice either. She turned back just in time to see Harry's face pale.

"It's going to kill someone!" he shouted, taking off again.

Bryt's stomach tightened over Harry's words, but she took off after him anyway. The group didn't stop until they reached a second floor passageway that was deserted. Bryt leaned over, hands on her knees, breathing deeply to catch her breath.

"Harry, _what_ was all that about?" Ron panted, seeming just as out of breath as Bryt, "I couldn't hear anything."

"_Look_!" Hermione gasped and Bryt looked up to see her pointing down the corridor.

Bryt squinted, seeing something shimmering on the wall further ahead of them. She straightened up, edging forward with her friends. Once they were close enough to see what it was, Bryt let out a gasp, clasping her hands over her mouth and her eyes widening. Between two windows were foot-high letters spelling out a message that sent an odd chill down Bryt's spine:

**THE CHAMBER OF SECRETS HAS BEEN  
OPENED. ENEMIES OF THE HEIR, BEWARE.**

Bryt couldn't tear her gaze from the words, until she noticed something hanging underneath it. Ron seemed to notice it, too, because he had just asked about it. Bryt forced herself to move forward with the others. Harry suddenly slipped in a large puddle of water and Hermione and Ron caught him, but Bryt was too transfixed with what was on the wall. Once they were close enough to realize what was under the writing, Bryt let out a noise somewhere between a weak scream and a gasp, jumping back so fast that she slipped in the puddle and landed, sprawled out on her back, with a loud splash.

Hanging by her tail from a torch bracket was Filch's cat, Mrs. Norris, seeming frozen, as if she had become a statue.

"Let's get out of here," Ron said after several seconds, moving towards Bryt and helping her up out of the water. Bryt was too frightened to thank him and she completely ignored the water dripping from her hair and clothes.

"Shouldn't we try and help—"

"Trust me, we don't want to be found here," Ron cut Harry off.

Bryt suddenly heard the rumble of students heading up the stairways and she knew there was no way they'd avoid being seen now. Bryt turned slightly, not realizing Ron was still gripping her arm, and stared as the buzzing of conversations suddenly cut off as students appeared from both ends of the corridor and noticed Bryt, Ron, Harry, and Hermione standing in the middle of the corridor near Filch's cat.

"Enemies of the Heir, beware! You'll be next, Mudbloods!"

Bryt turned quickly, noticing Malfoy had pushed his way to the front of the crowd with a smirk across his face and his gaze on Mrs. Norris.


	8. Petrified

Bryt glared over at Malfoy, shivering slightly from her wet clothes. Then, she heard Filch calling out as he made his way through the crowd.

"What's going on here? What's going on?" he demanded, then stared in horror when he spotted Mrs. Norris, "My cat! My cat! What's happened to Mrs. Norris?"

Bryt gulped, glancing over at her friends before looking back to Filch, who was now staring at Harry.

"_You_!" Filch cried out, "_You_! You've murdered my cat! You've killed her! I'll kill you! I'll—"

"_Argus_!"

Bryt jumped slightly, causing the water to splash under her feet, and turned to see that Dumbledore had shown up, most of the staff right behind him. Dumbledore walked right past the quartet and slowly took Mrs. Norris from the torch bracket.

"Come with me, Argus," Dumbledore said calmly, "You, too, Mr. Potter, Mr. Weasley, Miss Granger, Miss Watkins."

Bryt gulped, biting her lower lip. Did Dumbledore really think they had something to do with what happened to Mrs. Norris?

"My office is nearest, Headmaster," Lockhart spoke up with a grin, "Just upstairs—please feel free—"

"Thank you, Gilderoy."

Dumbledore headed through the parting crowd with Lockhart, McGonagall, and Snape. As Bryt followed with her friends, she suddenly became aware of a tight pressure around her upper right arm. Glancing sideways, she realized Ron seemed to have forgotten he was gripping onto her from when he helped her up earlier.

"You can let go of my arm now," she whispered, leaning over slightly.

Ron instantly jerked away from Bryt as if he had been electrocuted, muttering an apology. Bryt turned to keep her gaze ahead of her, rubbing her arm absentmindedly. It wasn't long before they had reached Lockhart's office and Bryt glanced around quickly at the several pictures of Lockhart that covered the walls. In each one, the photo-Lockhart was diving out of view, their hands over their roller-filled hair. Bryt was too nervous to think much on it, though, as she looked back to Dumbledore. He was examining Mrs. Norris from where he had laid her on Lockhart's desk. Bryt, Ron, Hermione, and Harry sunk into seats in a darker spot in the office.

As Dumbledore continued to examine Mrs. Norris, McGonagall hovered at his side, leaning close to the cat. Snape stood nearby, looking oddly like he was trying to hide being pleased, and Lockhart was constantly talking, but Bryt was so nervous, that all she was hearing was a distant muffle that she couldn't make out.

Bryt wiggled uncomfortably in her seat at the sight of Filch crying with his face hidden in his hands. She couldn't stand seeing him like that, so she kept her gaze away away, reminding herself that he was blaming Harry for what had happened to Mrs. Norris.

"She's not dead, Argus," Dumbledore's voice was soft, but it rang loudly for Bryt and she felt an immediate relief, exchanging a glance with her friends.

"Not dead?" Filch choked out, "But why is she all—all stiff and frozen?"

"She has been Petrified," Dumbledore said and Lockhart gave an exclamation of agreement, "But how, I cannot say..."

"Ask _him_!" Filch had turned to Harry now.

"No second year could have done this," Dumbledore said, "It would take Dark Magic of the most advanced—"

"He did it, he did it!" Filch cried out, turning purple in the face, "You saw what he wrote on the wall! He found—in my office—he knows I'm a—I'm a—He knows I'm a Squib!"

_'A what?'_ Bryt thought, but didn't dare speak up.

"I never _touched_ Mrs. Norris!" Harry said and everyone looked at him, "And I don't even know what a Squid _is_."

"Rubbish!" Filch snapped, "He saw my Kwikspell letter!"

_'His what letter?' _Bryt blinked, confused.

"If I might, Headmaster," Snape spoke up for the first time and Bryt cringed imaging what he was about to say against Harry, "Potter and his friends may have simply been in the wrong place at the wrong time. But we do have a set of suspicious circumstances here. Why was he in the upstairs corridor at all? Why wasn't he at the Halloween feast?"

"We were at Nearly Headless Nick's deathday party in the dungeon," Bryt spoke up quickly, "There's hundreds of ghosts who'll tell you that."

"But why not join the feast afterwords?" Snape smirked, "Why go to the corridor?"

"Because..." Bryt started, but stopped herself. What could she say? That they were chasing voices that only Harry could hear? No, that would be the worst thing to say at the moment.

"Because we were tried and wanted to go to bed," Harry spoke up.

"Without any supper?" Snape's smirk turned more into a smile that Bryt didn't like at all, "I didn't think ghosts provided food fit for living people at their parties."

"We weren't hungry," Ron said, but then his stomach growled, followed by Bryt's.

Snape's smile grew and Bryt flushed, ducking her head.

"I suggest, Headmaster," Snape continued, "That Potter is not being entirely truthful. It might be a good idea if he were deprived of certain privileges until he his ready to tell us the whole story. I personally feel he should be taken off the Gryffindor Quidditch team until he is ready to be honest."

"Really, Severus," McGonagall replied sharply, "I see no reason to stop the boy playing Quidditch. This cat wasn't hit over the head with a broomstick. There is no evidence at all that Potter has done anything wrong."

Bryt grinned a little and turned to Dumbledore, who was staring at Harry as if studying him.

"Innocent until proven guilty, Severus," the headmaster finally said in a firm voice. Neither Snape nor Filch seemed pleased about this.

"My cat has been Petrified!" Filch yelled, "I want to see some _punishment_!"

"We will be able to cure her, Argus," Dumbledore said, "Professor Sprout recently managed to procure some Mandrakes. As soon as they have reached their full size, I will have a potion made that will revive Mrs. Norris."

"I'll make it," Lockhart volunteered, "I must have done it a hundred times. I could whip up a Mandrake Restorative Draught in my sleep—"

"Excuse me," Snape interrupted, "But I believe I am the potions master at this school."

Silence fell over the group and Bryt glared at Snape. He had no right to be rude to someone as great as Gilderoy Lockhart, no matter how good he might be at brewing potions.

"You may go," Dumbledore told the four students.

Bryt hurried to her feet and rushed out of the room as fast as she could without running. Once she and the others were well from Lockhart's office, Harry pulled them into an empty classroom.

"D'you think I should have told them about that voice I heard?" Harry asked.

"No," Ron said quickly, "Hearing voices no one else can hear isn't a good sign, even in the wizarding world."

"You don't believe me, do you?" Harry asked.

"We do, Harry," Bryt cut in, "It's just..." Bryt trailed off, trying to think of the right word to explain everything that had happened that evening. "...Weird."

"I know it's weird," Harry said, "The whole thing's weird. What was that writing on the wall about? _The Chamber Has Been Opened_...What's that supposed to mean?"

"You know, it rings a sort of bell," Ron said, "I think someone told me a story about a secret chamber at Hogwarts once...might've been Bill..."

"What I wanna know," Bryt said, "Is what's a Squib?"

Ron gave a snort of laughter and Bryt, Hermione, and Harry all gave him a weird look.

"Well—it's not funny really—but as it's Filch," Ron said, "A Squib is someone born into a wizarding family but doesn't have any magical powers—"

"Kinda like the opposite of Muggleborn?" Bryt asked.

"Yeah," Ron nodded, "But Squibs are quite unusual. If Filch's trying to learn magic from a Kwikspell course, I reckon he must be a Squib. It would explain a lot. Like why he hates students so much. He's bitter."

"You don' gotta be so pleased about that," Bryt smirked at Ron's face as a clock started chiming.

"Midnight," Harry spoke up, "We'd better get to bed before Snape comes along and tries to frame us for something else."

Bryt nodded in agreement and the four left the classroom, heading up to the Gryffindor common room. Once there, they said goodnight and headed to their own dorms. Bryt wrapped herself up in her warm pajamas, glad to be out of her wet clothes, then curled up in her bed, though the words that had been written on the wall kept creeping into her mind and she had trouble sleeping that night.

Bryt wasn't the only one that couldn't forget what had happened. Students were often talking about the attack over the next few days. Filch seemed to be making the sight of the attack his permanent home by pacing around the corridor and trying to scrub the writing off the wall, though nothing he did made any difference.

Ron's sister, Ginny, seemed to be more upset than most over what had happened. Ron had said it was because Ginny really loved cats.

"But you haven't really got to know Mrs. Norris," Ron said one afternoon, trying to cheer Ginny up, "Honestly, we're much better off without her."

Ginny looked as if she were about to start crying, so Ron hurried on.

"Stuff like this doesn't often happen at Hogwarts," he said, "They'll catch the maniac who did it and have him out of here in no time. I just hope he's got time to Petrify Filch before he's expelled."

Ginny went pale and Bryt hit Ron upside the head, glaring at him before turning to Ginny.

"Ron's just bein' an immature jerk," Bryt said, putting an arm around the girl's shoulders, "And makin' some really horrible jokes. Don' listen to him."

One Wednesday a few weeks later, Bryt was sitting with Ron in the library, working on a History of Magic essay. Or, more-so, Ron was as Bryt was just putting down her quill, finishing hers, as Harry came over to them and sat down.

"I don't believe it," Ron grumbled, measuring his essay, "I'm still eight inches short...And Hermione's done four feet seven inches and her handwriting's _tiny_."

"Where is she?" Harry asked, starting to measure out his own essay. Bryt had just finished her measuring and found it was three feet exactly, right on the measurement limit.

"Lookin' for some book again," Bryt sighed, rolling up her essay, "It's like she wants to read the entire library before school's out or somethin'."

"Oh, you remember Justin Finch-Flechley?" Harry asked.

"The annoyin' Hufflepuff that won' shut up in Herbology?" Bryt asked.

"I passed him in the hall, he just suddenly turned and took off the other direction, like he wanted to avoid me or something."

"I'd be excited if he tried to avoid _me_," Bryt said, "Can't stand him."

"Don't blame you," Ron said, "All that junk about Lockhart being so great—OW!!"

Bryt glared and moved her foot away from Ron's as he turned to glare at her.

"Professor Lockhart _is_ a great man," she said, but didn't get any more out because Hermione showed up, sinking into the seat next to Bryt with an annoyed expression.

"_All_ the copies of _Hogwarts, A History_ have been taken out," Hermione sighed, "And there's a two-week waiting list. I _wish_ you hadn't talked me out of leaving my copy at your house, Bryt..."

"You couldn' fit it in your trunk," Bryt reminded her friend.

"Why do you want it?" Harry asked.

"The same reason everyone else wants it," Hermione answered, "To read up on the legend of the Chamber of Secrets."

"The what?" Bryt asked.

"The Chamber of Secrets. I know I've read about it before, but I can't remember _where_. And I can't find the story anywhere else—"

"Hermione, let me read your composition," Ron cut in, looking at his watch.

"No, I won't," Hermione replied, "You've had ten days to finish it—"

"I only need another two inches, come on—"

"Ron, you can look at mine," Bryt whispered as the bell rang. Luckily, Hermione didn't seem to notice as Bryt handed her essay to Ron for him to skim over as they headed to class.


	9. Legend of the Chamber

Like all other days in History of Magic, Bryt found herself sitting between Harry and Ron, playing a game of hangman on a piece of parchment. It was their way of staying awake through the dull, boring lectures of Professor Binns, the old, shriveled ghost who seemed to make the most interesting subjects of wars and rebellions seem like a lecture on the difference in cauldron thickness.

_You lose!_ Bryt wrote on the parchment with a smirk after Ron guessed a wrong letter. She was about to write what the word had been when she looked up, startled, as Hermione, who had been sitting in front of them and unaware of their game, raised her hand.

Binns looked amazed, cutting off in mid-lecture. After all, no one ever raised their hand in this classroom.

"Miss—er—?"

"Granger, Professor," Hermione said, "I was wondering if you could tell us anything about the Chamber of Secrets."

Binns blinked as the room suddenly seemed to stir awake, all eyes turning towards their teacher. Bryt straightened up in her seat, suddenly paying the most attention she ever had in the class.

"My subject is History of Magic," Binns said simply, "I deal with _facts_, Miss Granger, not myths and legends." He cleared his throat shortly and started back on his lecture, but Hermione stuck her hand in the air again and he cut off. "Miss Grant?"

"Please, sir," Hermione started, ignoring the fact Binns got her name wrong, "Don't all legends always have a basis in fact?"

Binns was staring at Hermione with a look of amazement. It was obvious he hadn't ever been interrupted in his class, even when he was alive.

"Well, yes, one could argue that, I suppose," Binns admitted slowly, studying Hermione, "However, the legend of which you speak is such a very _sensational_, even _ludicrous_ tale—"

Binns cut off again, looking over the class. Every face was turned towards him with an expression of pure interest. It was clear on the ghost's face that this was a first as well. Bryt had leaned forward on her desk, hoping that their teacher would finally give in.

"Oh, very well," Binns said, "Let me see...The Chamber of Secrets...

"You all know, of course, that Hogwarts was founded over a thousand years ago—the precise date is uncertain—by the four greatest witches and wizards of their age. The four school Houses are named after them: Godric Gryffindor, Helga Hufflepuff, Rowena Ravenclaw, and Salazar Slytherin. They built this castle together, far from prying Muggle eyes, for it was an age when magic was feared by common people, and witches and wizards suffered much persecution."

Binns paused to look over the students. Each one was hanging to his every word. Bryt kept her gaze on Binns, eager for more.

"For a few years, the founders worked in harmony together, seeking out the youngsters who showed signs of magic and bringing them to the castle to be educated. But then disagreements sprang up between them. A rift began to grow between Slytherin and the others. Slytherin wished to be more _selective_ about the students admitted to Hogwarts. He believed that magical learning should be kept within all-magic families. He disliked taking students of Muggle parentage, believing them to be untrustworthy. After a while, there was a serious argument on the subject between Slytherin and Gryffindor, and Slytherin left the school."

Binns paused again and Bryt stared at her History of Magic teacher, letting the story sink in. She couldn't help but think that nothing much had changed since the time of the school's founders. Most Slytherins still believed Muggleborns were worthless, and there was still a strong rivalry between Slytherins and Gryffindors.

"Reliable historical sources tell us this much," Binns continued, "But these honest facts have been obscured by the fanciful legend of the Chamber of Secrets. The story goes that Slytherin had built a hidden chamber in the castle, of which the other founders knew nothing.

"Slytherin, according to legend, sealed the Chamber of Secrets so that none would be able to open it until his own true heir arrived at the school. The heir alone would be able to unseal the Chamber of Secrets, unleash the horror within, and use it to purge the school of all who were unworthy to study magic."

Silence fell over the classroom and Bryt stared with wide eyes, her mouth hanging open slightly. She wanted to hear more, to find out exactly what was in the Chamber of Secrets. She wasn't alone. The entire class was alert and looking at their teacher expectingly. Binns seemed annoyed by this.

"The whole thing is arrant nonsense, of course," their teacher said, "Naturally, the school has been searched for evidence of such a chamber, many times, by the most learned witches and wizards. It does not exist. A tale told to frighten the gullible."

Binns looked like he was ready to get back to the original lesson, but Hermione's hand went into the air again.

"Sir—what exactly do you mean by the 'horror within' the Chamber?"

"That is believed to be some sort of monster, which the Heir of Slytherin alone can control."

Bryt bit her lip, sinking back slightly. A monster that only one person would be able to control? She really didn't like the idea of that.

"I tell you," Binns spoke up, annoyed as he seemed to realized the class's reaction, "The thing does not exist. There is no Chamber and no monster."

"But sir," Seamus spoke up, "If the Chamber can only be opened by Slytherin's true heir, no one else _would_ be able to find it, would they?"

"Nonsense, O'Flaherty," Binns replied, seeming even more annoyed now, "If a long succession of Hogwarts headmasters and headmistresses haven't found the thing—"

"But Professor," Parvati spoke up this time, "You'd probably have to use Dark Magic to open it—"

"Just because a wizard _doesn't_ use Dark Magic doesn't mean he _can't_, Miss Pennyfeather," Binns snapped, "I repeat, if the likes of Dumbledore—"

"But maybe you've got to be related to Slytherin," Dean cut in, "So Dumbledore couldn't—"

"That will do," Binns had enough, "It is a myth! It does not exist! There is not a shred of evidence that Slytherin ever built so much as a secret broom cupboard! I regret telling you such a foolish story! We will return, if you please, to _history_, to solid, believable, verifiable _fact_!"

Binns returned to the lesson and the class sunk back into it's usual routine, but Bryt, Harry, and Ron didn't return to their game of hangman. Bryt was too preoccupied thinking over what Binns had said. A secret chamber that only the heir of Slytherin could open...A horrible monster hidden in it...Bryt shivered, thinking about all the dark creatures she had read about. She doubted anything would turn out okay if any of them were the monster down in the Chamber.

When class finally ended, Bryt headed through the crowd towards the common room with her friends.

"I always knew Salazar Slytherin was a twisted old loony," Ron said, "But I never knew he started all this pure-blood stuff. I wouldn't be in his house if you paid me. Honestly, if the Sorting Hat had tried to put me in Slytherin, I'd've got on the train straight back home."

"No kiddin'," Bryt agreed while Hermione nodded.

"Hiya, Harry!" Colin was in the group heading past the friends and Bryt groaned.

"Hullo, Colin," Harry replied in a dull voice and Bryt wondered if he had even noticed Colin was actually there.

"Harry—Harry—a boy in my class has been saying you're—"

Colin didn't get to finish because he was being pushed along by fellow students. He barely managed a "See you, Harry!" before disappearing into the crowd.

"What's a boy in his class saying about you?" Hermione asked.

"That I'm Slytherin's heir, I expect," Harry said gloomily.

"People here'll believe anything," Ron spat.

"I wonder if there really _is_ a Chamber of Secrets..." Bryt said as they reached the next staircase. The crowd was much thinner and they could move easier.

"I don't know," Hermione replied, "Dumbledore couldn't cure Mrs. Norris, and that makes me think that whatever attacked her might not be—well—human."

Bryt was about to ask what Hermione meant when they had turned the corner and found themselves in the corridor where the writing was. There was no longer the Petrified Mrs. Norris, nor was there water all over the floor. A chair was now sitting under the writing, but other than that, it was the same as on Halloween night.

"That's where Filch has been keeping guard," Ron stated unnecessarily before exchanging a look with the others.

"Can't hurt to look around," Bryt said slowly.

Harry had dropped his bag and got on his hands and knees. Bryt moved closer to the wall with Hermione.

"Scorch marks!" Harry called, "Here—and here—"

"Come and look at this!" Hermione called, "This is funny..."

Bryt moved closer with the others to see what Hermione was pointing at. Looking up, Bryt noticed one of the panes in the window had a small crack, and trying to get out of the castle through the crack was a group of spiders.

"Have you ever seen spiders act like that?" Hermione asked.

"No," Harry said as Bryt shook her head, "Have you, Ron? Ron?"

Bryt, Harry, and Hermione turned to see Ron was standing on the other side of the wall, looking as if he might take off running at any moment.

"You okay?" Bryt asked.

"I—don't—like—spiders," Ron said.

"You don'?" Bryt blinked.

"You've used spiders in Potions loads of times," Hermione added.

"I don't mind them dead," Ron said, looking away from the window, "I just don't like the way they move..."

Hermione and Bryt both started giggling.

"It's not funny," Ron snapped, "I don't make fun of you being afraid of Scabbers, Bryt."

Bryt cut off, blushing. Ron was right. Her friends had known since their first day at Hogwarts that Bryt was terrified of rats, which meant she was terrified of Scabbers and usually went out of her way to avoid him. Bryt knew perfectly well how Ron was feeling right now.

"And if you must know, when I was three, Fred turned my—my teddy bear into a great big filthy spider because I broke his toy broomstick," Ron added, "You wouldn't like them either if you'd been holding your bear and suddenly it had too many legs and..."

Ron gave a shutter and Hermione looked like she was trying not to laugh. Bryt walked over, hugging Ron, only to have him push her off. Bryt just smirked at her friend.

"Remember all that water on the floor?" Harry seemed to be trying to get off the subject, "Where did that come from? Someone's mopped it up."

"It was about here," Ron seemed glad for the subject change, moving towards a nearby door, "Level with this door." He started to reach for it, then suddenly stopped.

Bryt groaned, realizing where they were now.

"I ain't goin' in there," she said, crossing her arms over her chest stubbornly.

"Bryt," Hermione looked over her friend, "Moaning Myrtle could have seen something, we should ask."

"Nuh-_uh_!" Bryt shook her head, "I don' wanna be anywhere near that ghost."

Hermione sighed.

"We'll only take a minute, okay?" she pressed, "You can go in there for a minute, can't you?"

Bryt narrowed her eyes, studying Hermione. Finally, she sighed and dropped her arms.

"Fine, one minute," she said, heading to the bathroom door with the OUT OF ORDER sign hanging on it.

The bathroom looked just like one someone would expect to be haunted. Most of the sinks had chips in them and sat under a dirty, cracked mirror that went the length of the wall. The room was dim, lit by only a few almost-burnt-out candles, and the toilet stalls were in bad shape as well, some of them had the doors hanging off their hinges.

Hermione motioned for the others to be quiet and went to the last stall in the row. Bryt, Harry, and Ron followed.

"Hello, Myrtle, how are you?" Hermione asked.

Moaning Myrtle looked at the group from where she was floating above the toilet, then she spotted Harry and Ron.

"This is a _girls'_ bathroom," she said, "_They're_ not girls."

"'Course not," Bryt said, hoping that they wouldn't have to stay in the bathroom for too long.

"We just wanted to show them how—er—nice it is in here," Hermione added, motioning around.

"Hurry up and ask her," Bryt whispered behind Hermione.

"What are you whispering?" Myrtle had noticed what Harry did.

"Nothing," Harry, who was beside Bryt, spoke up, "We wanted to ask—"

"I wish people would stop talking behind my back!" Myrtle cut in, on the verge of tears, "I _do_ have feelings, you know, even if I _am_ dead—"

_'Oh, just great, she's gonna cry,' _Bryt thought, horrified. She needed to try and stop the ghost, quick.

"We don' wanna upset you," Bryt said, "We only—"

"You don't want to upset me!" Myrtle wailed, "That's a good one! My life has been nothing but misery at this place and now people come along ruining my death!"

"We wanted to ask if you've seen anything funny lately," Hermione rushed, trying to get it in before Myrtle started crying again, "Because a cat was attacked right outside your front door on Halloween."

"Did you see anyone near here that night?" Harry asked.

"I wasn't paying attention," Myrtle replied, "Peeves upset me so much I came in here and tried to _kill_ myself. Then, of course, I remembered that I'm—that I'm—"

"Already dead," Ron put in.

It was the wrong thing to say. Myrtle howled loudly, rising into the air and plunging into the toilet, splashing the four friends as she vanished into what sounded like the U-bend. Bryt jumped backwards, then tugged on Hermione's arm.

"Let's get outta here, please?" Bryt whispered.

The four left the bathroom, Bryt closing the door behind them.

"RON!"

All four of them jumped and spun around to see Percy was at the top of the stairs nearby, staring at the friends in a state of shock.

"That's a _girls'_ bathroom! What were _you_—"

"Just having a look around," Ron gave a shrug, "Clues, you know—"

"Get—away—from—there—" Percy started moving towards the group, waving his arms in a way that made Bryt think he was trying to take flight, "Don't you _care_ what this looks like? Coming back here while everyone's at dinner—"

"Why shouldn't we be here?" Ron cut in, "Listen, we never laid a finger on that cat!"

"That's what I told Ginny, but she still seems to think you're going to be expelled, I've never seen her so upset, crying her eyes out, you might think of _her_, all the first years are thoroughly overexcited by this business—"

"_You_ don't care about Ginny," Ron cut Percy off, his ears red, "_You're_ just worried I'm going to mess up your chances of being Head Boy—"

"Five points from Gryffindor!" Percy cut in, tapping his prefect badge, "And I hope this teaches you a lesson! No more _detective work_, or I'll write to Mum!"

Percy turned and stomped off and Bryt glared after him, even though she hadn't said a word in the argument. She stuck her tongue out at the retreating prefect, which seemed to break the mood because Ron and Harry started laughing.

That night, though, Ron's irritated mood seemed to come back when he noticed Percy. The four sat on the opposite side of the common room from the prefect and tried to work on their homework, but Ron kept getting ink splashes over his homework, then accidentally set it on fire when he tried to get rid of the blots with his wand. Irritated, he slammed his _Standard Book of Spells, Grade 2_ shut, and Hermione followed suit. Bryt gave her bushy-haired friend a strange look.

"Who can it be, though?" she asked, confusing Bryt even more until she continued, "Who'd _want_ to frighten all the Squibs and Muggleborns out of Hogwarts?"

"I can think of one person," Bryt said, the image of Malfoy's smirk on Halloween coming to mind.

"Yeah," Ron spoke up, "I mean, who _else_ do we know who think all Muggleborn are scum?"

"If you're talking about Malfoy—"

"Duh!" Bryt said.

"You heard him," Ron added, "_'You'll be next, Mudbloods!'_—come on, you've only got to look at his foul rat face to know it's him—"

"Malfoy, the Heir of Slytherin?" Hermione didn't seem convinced.

"Look at his family," Harry spoke up, "The whole lot of them have been in Slytherin; he's always boasting about it. They could easily be Slytherin's descendants. His father's definitely evil enough."

"Yeah, I bet the secret to the Chamber's been in that family for centuries," Bryt added.

"Well," Hermione said slowly, "I suppose it's possible..."

"But how do we prove it?" Harry asked.

"There might be a way," Hermione started hesitantly, leaning forward and speaking in a whisper, "If course, it would be difficult. And dangerous, very dangerous. We'd be breaking about fifty school rules, I expect—"

"If, in a month of so, you feel like explaining," Ron grumbled, "You will let us know, won't you?"

"All right," Hermione replied sharply, "What we'd need to do is get inside the Slytherin common room and ask Malfoy a few questions without him realizing it's us."

Bryt suddenly gasped, realizing what Hermione was getting at.

"Yer talkin' about a Polyjuice Potion, aren' you?" she asked.

"A what?" Harry and Ron both looked at Bryt.

"A Polyjuice Potion," Bryt said, "It temporarily transforms you into someone else, all we gotta do is transform into Slytherins. Though, the hard part's gonna be gettin' the book and makin' the potion..."

"Yeah," Hermione nodded, "The recipe's in a book called _Moste Potente Potions_ and it's bound to be in the Restricted Section of the library."

"Doubt a teacher'd sign for us to get the book," Bryt sighed, "Why else would we be wantin' it except to try and make one of the potions?"

"I think," Hermione said, "That if we made it sound as though we were just interested in the theory, we might stand a chance..."

"Oh, come on," Ron said, "No teacher's going to fall for that. They'd have to be really thick."

Bryt sighed, knowing Ron was right, so she went back to her work. Hermione, though, didn't seem ready to give up her plan. Bryt couldn't help but wonder what was going through her friend's mind at the moment and how she planned for them to get their hands on _Moste Potente Potions_.


	10. Nasty Bludger

Bryt always looked forward to Defense Against the Dark Arts class. Lockhart didn't bring any more creatures into the classroom, but he would always read passages from his books and Bryt enjoyed listening to him, even though she already had the books almost memorized. There were even times when Lockhart would act out scenes from his book, often going to Harry for help. For once, Bryt could understand Harry's reluctance. Even though she would have loved to act out scenes with Lockhart, she wouldn't want to have to act out anything in front of her entire class.

Now, Bryt was sitting with Hermione in class, watching Harry pretend to be a werewolf to help Lockhart act out a scene from _Wandering with Werewolves_.

"Nice loud howl, Harry—exactly—and then, if you'll believe it, I pounced—like this—_slammed_ him to the floor—thus—with one hand, I managed to hold him down—with my other, I put my wand to his throat—I then screwed up my remaining strength and preformed the immensely complex Homorphus Charm—he let out a piteous moan—go on, Harry—higher than that—good—the fur vanished—the fangs shrank—and he turned back into a man. Simple, yet effective—and another village will remember me forever as the hero who delivered them from the monthly terror of werewolf attacks."

Lockhart rose to his feet as the bell rang.

"Homework—compose a poem about my defeat of the Wagga Wagga Werewolf!" Lockhart grinned, "Signed copies of _Magical Me_ to the author of the best one!"

Bryt rose to her feet with Hermione and Ron, waiting for the rest of the class to leave as Harry came over to them.

"Ready?" he asked.

"Wait till everyone's gone," Hermione seemed nervous, as the last of the students left the room, "All right..."

Hermione and Bryt went to Lockhart's desk, Ron and Harry hovering behind them. Hermione clutched at a piece of parchment as she cleared her throat.

"Professor Lockhart?" Hermione started, "Bryt and I wanted to—to get this book out of the library. Just for background reading." She slowly held out the piece of parchment. "But the thing is, it's in the Restricted Section of the library, so we need a teacher to sign for it—I'm sure it would help us understand what you say in _Gadding with Ghouls_ about slow-acting venoms—"

"Ah, _Gadding with Ghouls_!" Lockhart took the note from Hermione with a bright grin, "Possibly my favorite book! You enjoyed it?"

"Yes, a lot," Bryt piped, nodding her head, grinning herself.

"It was so clever the way you trapped that last one with the tea-strainer—" Hermione started.

"Well, I'm sure no one will mind me giving the best student of the year and her friend a little extra help," Lockhart cut in, pulling out an enormous peacock quill. Ron got a disgusted look on his face. "Yes, nice, isn't it? I usually save it for book-signings."

Lockhart put his loopy-lettered signature on the parchment and handed it back to Hermione. Bryt leaned over to study Lockhart's handwriting, grinning.

"So, Harry," Lockhart turned towards the boy while Hermione pocketed the note, "Tomorrow's the first Quidditch match of the season, I believe? Gryffindor against Slytherin, is it not? I hear you're a useful player. I was Seeker, too. I was asked to try for the National Squad, but preferred to dedicate my life to the eradication of the Dark Forces. Still, if ever you feel the need for a little private training, don't hesitate to ask. Always happy to pass on my expertise to less able players..."

Harry made a strange noise before leaving with the others. Hermione was pulling out the note for the others to see. Bryt leaned closer, grinning as she studied Lockhart's signature again.

"I don't believe it," Harry said, "He didn't even _look_ at the book we wanted."

"That's because he's a brainless _git_," Ron replied, "But who—OW! Bryt!"

Bryt glared as she pulled her hand back from where she just hit Ron upside the head.

"Lockhart is _not_ a brainless git," Bryt snapped.

They had reached the library and cut off their conversation as they headed towards Madam Pince, the librarian and Hermione showed her the note.

"_Moste Potente Potions_?" Madam Pince repeated, studying the students as she tried to get the note from Hermione.

"I was wondering if I could keep it," Hermione said quietly.

"Oh, come on," Ron yanked away the note and handed it to the librarian, "We'll get you another autograph. Lockhart'll sign anything if it stands still long enough."

Bryt elbowed Ron in the side as Madam Pince examined the note before disappearing between two shelves. Ron rubbed his side, glaring at Bryt, but she ignored the look as Madam Pince returned with a large book covered in mold spots. Hermione carefully put the book in her bag before the four headed from the library and straight for Moaning Myrtle's bathroom.

Ron hadn't wanted to go in, clearly remembering Percy's yelling. Bryt didn't want to just for the fact she didn't want to be near Moaning Myrtle, but Hermione had stated it was the last place anyone would walk in on them at, so they ended up deciding on the room. Even though Myrtle was in one of the stalls crying, she left them alone so they ignored her in turn, and Bryt was extremely grateful for that.

Hermione slowly opened the book and Bryt began flipping through the pages for the potion they were looking for. She tried to ignore the gruesome images illustrating the effects of the potions throughout the book until she found the page labeled 'The Polyjuice Potion'. Bryt tried not to pay attention to this image, either (sketches of people in mid-transformation, looking in pain) and scanned over the instructions.

"Never seen a potion like this before," she mumbled and Hermione leaned close to look over the page as well, "We'll be able to get the lacewing flies, leeches, fluxweed, and knotgrass easy enough, but powdered bicorn horn...shredded skin of boomslang..."

"Not to mention a bit of whoever we're changing into," Hermione added.

"Excuse me?" Ron asked, "What d'you mean a bit of whoever we're changing into? I'm drinking _nothing_ with Crabbe's toenails in it—"

"Those parts go in last," Bryt pretended Ron hadn't spoken, "We can worry about them later."

"D'you realize how much we're going to have to steal, Bryt, Hermione?" Harry asked, "Shredded skin of boomslang, that's definitely not in the students' cupboard. What're we going to do, break into Snape's private stores? I don't know if that's a good idea..."

Hermione shut the book and Bryt yelped, her hand had still been on the page.

"Well, if you two are going to chicken out, fine," Hermione said as Bryt brushed Hermione's hand away and reopened the book.

"Yeah, 'mione and I will do this alone if you you wanna back out," Bryt added, "_We'd_ rather find out who's behind this than let half the school be attacked."

"Fine, we'll do it," Ron sighed, "But no toenails, okay?"

"How long will it take to make, anyway?" Harry asked.

"About a month," Bryt said, "Mainly 'cause the fluxweed has to be picked at a full moon and the lacewings have to be stewed for twenty-one days."

"A month?" Ron echoed, "Malfoy could have attacked half the Muggleborns in the school by then!"

Bryt and Hermione both glared at Ron and he raised his hands defensively.

"But it's the best plan we've got," he said, "So full steam ahead, I say."

Bryt closed the book carefully and put it in her bag, heading with Hermione out of the bathroom first to check if the coast was clear before motioning for Harry and Ron to follow. Then, they started back for the common room to start on homework before bed.

**xxxxx**

The next morning seemed to threaten rain from the moment Bryt woke up. She dressed warmly, knowing she'd be outside watching the Quidditch match, and decided to leave her camera inside for once. She knew one of the enchantments on it left it waterproof, but she still tried to keep it out of the rain as much as possible.

Bryt waited until Hermione was ready before heading down in the common room where Ron was waiting. They headed to the Great Hall together for breakfast, then at eleven, followed the rest of the school down to the Quidditch pitch for the game. They stopped only momentarily outside of the Gryffindor locker room to wish Harry luck before finding seats up in the stands, anxious about the game. Bryt was hoping Gryffindor would win, but there was the fact the entire Slytherin team had Nimbus Two Thousand And Ones. It was going to take a lot of luck for the Gryffindors to pull through. Bryt began fiddling with her lucky bracelet around her wrist, which seemed to annoy Ron since the stone chips were noisily hitting each other now.

"Bryt, stop it," Ron hissed for the fifth time.

"I'm nervous, deal with it," Bryt snapped back.

It wasn't long before the two teams came out, Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff joining Gryffindor in the cheers for the Gryffindor Quidditch team. They seemed to want Slytherin beaten as much as the Gryffindors did. Soon, the two teams were in the air and the game had begun, soon becoming wet as a downpour started.

Not long into the game, however, it became obvious that something was wrong. Fred and George didn't dare stray away from Harry, leaving the rest of the Gryffindor team vulnerable, because one Bludger seemed to want to go after Harry and no one else. Bryt kept her eyes on Harry, biting her lower lip. Sure, Bludgers were dangerous, but this one seemed even more so.

"Somethin's wrong with that Bludger," Bryt said worriedly when the Gryffindor team called for a time out after the score was 60-0 to Slytherin.

"I bet you anything Malfoy's behind it," Ron grumbled.

"What're they doing?" Hermione asked when the Gryffindor team took to the air again, "They're not doing anything about that Bludger?"

"And Fred and George aren' stayin' with Harry anymore," Bryt's eyes widened, "They're goin' back to the rest of the team."

"Harry's going to get himself killed!" Hermione cried out.

Bryt had to agree. Harry was taking drastic measures now to avoid the rogue Bludger, diving, swerving, and doing odd twirls on his broom. Bryt had no clue how he was going to survive the game, let alone look for the Snitch when he was constantly moving. Bryt began fiddling with her bracelet again, biting her lower lip as she kept her gaze on Harry, the rest of the game now forgotten.

Bryt watched as Harry faced towards Malfoy and stopped for a single second, which was a mistake. Bryt winced as the Bludger rammed into Harry's right arm, nearly knocking the boy off his broom. By the time the Bludger was going for Harry again, he had repositioned himself and was flying straight at Malfoy.

"What's he doin'?" Bryt asked, watching in confusion as Malfoy swerved out of Harry's way and Harry took his left arm off his broom, reaching out.

Harry's broom started in a nosedive and Harry hit the muddy ground. Bryt jumped to her feet, yelling out. Everyone began cheering when they noticed Harry was gripping the Snitch, but Bryt didn't join. She was too worried about whether Harry was okay or not; he wasn't moving.

Bryt pushed through the crowds with Ron and Hermione right behind. Once they got out on the field, Fred was wrestling the rogue Bludger and Harry was unconscious in the mud, his right arm sticking out at an odd angle. The rest of the Gryffindors had come down now, as well as Lockhart.

Harry began to stir and Bryt gave a sigh of relief to see her friend was okay. Lockhart leaned over Harry just as the boy opened his eyes.

"Oh no, not you," Harry moaned.

"Doesn't know what he's saying," Lockhart called out, "Not to worry, Harry, I'm about to fix your arm."

"_No_! I'll keep it like this, thanks..."

Harry started to sit up, but his face twisted into an expression of pain. Hearing something click beside her, Bryt turned quickly and yanked away Colin's camera out of the boy's hands.

"This is not a time for pictures!" she snapped, which left Colin looking at her with an expression of shock.

Bryt ignored Colin, turning back to Harry and Lockhart.

"Lie back, Harry," Lockhart was saying, "It's a simple charm I've used countless times—"

"Why can't I just go to the hospital wing?" Harry asked, his face set in an odd expression.

"He really should, Professor," Wood spoke up, grinning brightly, "Great capture, Harry, really spectacular, your best yet, I'd say—"

"Stand back," Lockhart started rolling up his sleeves and Bryt took a cautioned step back with the crowd. Though, Bryt gave Wood a slight glare. After all, Harry was laying in the mud with a broken arm and Wood seemed to care more about the fact that Harry had caught the Snitch before he fell.

"No—don't—" Harry started, pulling Bryt's attention back to him. Lockhart was already waving his wand.

Bryt gave a gasp, dropping Colin's camera in the mud and feeling her stomach twist into knots. Harry's arm was now a flimsy, useless limb, every bone in it gone. Bryt swallowed hard, biting her lower lip again. At first, she wondered how Lockhart could have messed up the spell, but then she had to remind herself that he was human and everyone made mistakes sometimes. Even the best of wizards probably messed up eventually.

"Ah...Yes. Well, that can sometimes happen," Lockhart stated, "But the point is, the bones are no longer broken. That's the thing to bear in mind. So, Harry, just toddle up to the hospital wing—ah, Mr. Weasley, Miss Granger, Miss Watkins, would you escort him?—and Madam Pomfrey will be able to—er—tidy you up a bit."

Harry slowly got to his feet and staggered slightly, obviously feeling the effects of his missing bones. He glanced at his arm and paled and Bryt hurried over to him, afraid he'd pass out again.

"C'mon, let's get you to the hospital wing," she said as Ron and Hermione came over.

The crowd parted for them as they helped Harry through the grounds and up to the castle. It wasn't long before they reached the hospital wing and explained to the school nurse what had happened. She wasn't pleased at all.

"You should have come straight to me!" Madam Pomfrey snapped, holding up Harry's boneless arm, "I can mend bones in a second—but growing them back—"

"You will be able to, won't you?" Harry asked while Bryt, Hermione, and Ron waited nearby. Bryt kept biting her lower lip, watching anxiously.

"I'll be able to," Madam Pomfrey said, tossing Harry a pair of pajamas, "But it'll be painful. You'll have to stay the night."

Bryt and Hermione moved away and helped Ron close some curtains so he could help Harry change.

"How can you stick up for Lockhart now, eh?" Ron's voice came through the curtain, "If Harry had wanted deboning he would have asked for it."

"He just made a mistake," Bryt replied hotly, "Anyone's capable of mistakes."

"And it doesn't hurt anymore, does it, Harry?" Hermione added.

"No," Harry called, "But it doesn't do anything else, either."

Madam Pomfrey went around the curtain then and Bryt and Hermione followed to see Harry sitting on the bed. Bryt noticed the nurse was holding a bottle with the label 'Skele-Gro' on it.

"You're in for a rough night," Madam Pomfrey poured some of the steaming liquid into a beaker before handing it to Harry, "Regrowing bones is a nasty business."

The liquid was obviously unappetizing because Harry began coughing as he choked it down. Madam Pomfrey started muttering something about sports and teachers as she left and Bryt sat on the edge of Harry's bed while Ron helped him with a glass of water. Now that it seemed Harry was going to be okay, Bryt could finally relax more and think about the end of the match.

"We won the game," Bryt grinned, trying to cheer Harry up some, "Your catch was great."

"I want to know how he fixed that Bludger," Hermione said.

"We can add that to the list of questions we'll ask him when we've taken the Polyjuice Potion," Harry sank back into his pillows, "I hope it tastes better than this stuff."

"If it's got bits of Slytherins in it?" Ron asked, "You've got to be joking."

The rest of the Quidditch team came at that moment, all of them dripping with mud and carrying sweets and bottles of pumpkin juice.

"Unbelievable flying, Harry!" George grinned, "I've seen Marcus Flint yelling at Malfoy. Something about having the Snitch on top of his head and not noticing. Malfoy didn't seem too happy."

The team just started to move around Harry's bed, ready to dump the sweats for everyone to share, when Madam Pomfrey suddenly rushed over.

"This boy needs rest!" she shouted, "He's got thirty-three bones to regrow! Out! OUT!"

Bryt jumped to her feet and hurried from the room with the others, not wanting to face an angry school nurse.


	11. Dueling Disaster

The next morning, Bryt and Hermione met Ron in the common room and the three decided to go visit Harry to see how he was doing. One floor away from the hospital wing, though, the three stopped in their tracks as they heard McGonagall's voice in a classroom nearby.

"Poor Colin Creevey was attacked last night, Filius," she said, obviously talking to their Charms teacher, "Found him on the stairs on his way to go visit Harry in the hospital wing. Whatever it was that attacked him destroyed the film in his camera..."

Colin Creevey had been Petrified? Sure, Bryt really couldn't stand the boy, but it didn't mean she'd want him attacked or hurt...If it had been Malfoy, she probably would have thought he got was he deserved, but Colin? Yes, he was annoying and always wanted to take pictures at the wrong times, but that didn't mean he deserved to be Petrified. Bryt felt a shiver run down her spine and shook her head slightly as she really thought about what had happened. The attack on Colin meant that whatever had attacked Mrs. Norris was now attacking students...

Bryt suddenly felt a tug on her arm, jerking her from her thoughts, and turned to see Hermione pulling them away and around the corner.

"We can't wait," she said breathlessly, "We have to start the potion now. We should get an old cauldron and the ingredients we can from the student cupboard."

Bryt and Ron both nodded in agreement.

"I'll go get the book and meet you in Myrtle's bathroom," Bryt said, heading back to the Gryffindor common room.

Half an hour later, Bryt, Hermione, and Ron were squeezed into one of the stalls in the out-of-order bathroom, working over the potion. Hermione had created a portable, waterproof fire in the toilet and the cauldron was sitting over it.

"I just hope all of this is goin' to work," Bryt whispered while they worked.

"It's me," Harry's voice suddenly came, followed by a door shutting. Bryt jumped, her feet splashing against the floor, and Hermione moved towards the stall door.

"_Harry_!" she breathed, yanking the door open, "You gave us such a fright—come in—how's your arm?"

"Fine," Harry said, squeezing into the stall. There was barely any room left now.

"We were gonna come visit you," Bryt said, "But we heard about Colin and decided to start on the potion."

"The sooner we get a confession out of Malfoy, the better," Ron added, "D'you know what I think? He was in such a foul temper after the Quidditch match, he took it out on Colin."

"There's something else," Harry said as Bryt added some more knotgrass, "Dobby came to visit me in the middle of the night."

"What?" Bryt looked up, blinking.

"He was the one who sealed the barrier on us at King's Cross," Harry explained, "And he was the one who bewitched the Bludger. He wants me out of the school for my safety, because of what's going on. He knows exactly what's happening, he said that history was repeating itself. There _is_ a Chamber of Secrets, and it's being opened _again_."

"The Chamber of Secrets has been opened _before_?" Hermione asked.

"This settles it," Ron said triumphantly, "Lucius Malfoy must've opened the Chamber when he was at school here and now he's told dear old Draco how to do it. It's obvious. Wish Dobby'd told you what kind of monster's in there, though. I want to know how come nobody's noticed it sneaking around the school."

"Maybe it's invisible," Hermione said, stirring the potion, "Or maybe it can disguise itself—pretend to be a suit of armor or something—I've read about Chameleon Ghouls—"

"You read too much, Hermione," Ron said, adding the lacewings to the potion.

"But she has a point," Bryt said, "I'll go through my books later and see if I can find any creature that has the power to Petrify and turn invisible."

Ron rolled his eyes before looking to Harry.

"So Dobby stopped us from getting on the train and broke your arm..." he shook his head, "You know what, Harry? If he doesn't stop trying to save your life, he's going to kill you."

Bryt gave a laugh at that, going back to the potion. They worked on it for most of the day before heading back to the common room.

It seemed the news about Colin was spreading fast. By Monday, the entire school knew about it. First years seemed terrified to go anywhere alone, always traveling in large groups. Students also began trading around strange object that were claimed to protect them against whatever was attacking people at Hogwarts. Bryt found herself keeping her distance from Neville because of a foul-smelling onion he started carrying with him everywhere, as well as a pointed crystal and a newt tail that was rotting.

Not surprisingly, not many students were willing to stay over the Christmas Holidays. Bryt had finally decided she wanted to stay at Hogwarts with her friends, so she signed up with Harry, Hermione, and Ron. They were surprised when they found Malfoy was staying as well and decided they needed to get the last few potions ingredients to finish the potion over the holidays. It'd be a perfect time to use it. The only problem was they had to somehow sneak into Snape's private storage to get the ingredients.

"What we need," Hermione spoke up one afternoon before their Potions class, "Is a diversion. Then one of us can sneak into Snape's office and take what we need."

"I'd rather eat slugs than start a diversion in Snape's class," Bryt said, "Especially if I get caught."

"I think I'd better do the stealing," Hermione seemed to ignore Bryt, "You two will be expelled if you get into any more trouble, and you've gotten into fights, Bryt. I've got a clean record—"

"Clean record?" Bryt echoed, "What about when you and Harry were caught gettin' rid of Norbert last year? Not to mention all those rules we broke to save the Sorcerer's Stone from Voldemort."

Hermione glared at Bryt and Ron flinched at Voldemort's name, but Bryt ignored it.

"So all you need to do is cause enough mayhem to keep Snape busy for five minutes or so," Hermione said simply, obviously deciding not to respond to Bryt's comment.

Bryt groaned, looking at the others. Like she said earlier, she'd rather eat slugs. Of course, they needed those ingredients. So, when Potions class came, Bryt tried to keep her mind on her potion while she waited for Hermione to give the signal.

Since Bryt was forcing herself to focus, her Swelling Potion was doing extremely well, though Harry's, next to her, was very watery. Snape passed them over before heading towards Neville's potion, then Hermione gave a quick nod.

Harry pulled out a small firework, poking it lightly with his wand to set it off before sending it across the room where it landed in Goyle's cauldron. Swelling Potion showered over the class in a loud explosion and Bryt ducked under the desk to keep from being hit. Students began swelling in several areas and Snape was trying to calm everyone down. Bryt had to fight from laughing as she peeked out from under her desk and noticed Malfoy's nose was almost half the size of his face now.

"Silence! SILENCE!" Snape yelled, "Anyone who has been splashed, come here for a Deflating Draft—when I found out who did this—"

As students rushed for the antidote, Bryt came out from under her desk and noticed Hermione's robes were bulging slightly. She had gotten the ingredients, at least.

After everyone who needed it got their antidote and began returning to normal size, Snape had gone to Goyle's potion and pulled out the remainder of the firework and the class fell silent.

"If I ever find out who threw this," Snape said, looking straight at Harry, "I shall _make sure_ that person is expelled."

The class was quiet for the remainder ten minutes until the bell rang and everyone hurried from the room.

"He knew it was me," Harry whispered as the four went into Moaning Myrtle's bathroom, "I could tell."

"He can't prove anythin'," Bryt said as Hermione added the ingredients, "Don' worry about it."

"The potion will be done in two weeks," Hermione spoke up happily.

**xxxxx**

That night, Bryt caught Hermione alone in their room, wanting to talk about something that she had been thinking over since they got the idea to use the Polyjuice Potion.

"What is it?" Hermione asked when Bryt shut the door.

"Just...Well..." Bryt started. She took a deep breath and forced out the rest in a rush. "I'm not sure I should go with you when you use the potion."

"Why not?" Hermione asked, staring at Bryt in surprise.

"You know how I am, 'mione," Bryt said slowly, "You know my temper. What if Malfoy says somethin' that sets me off, but is perfectly natural conversation for Slytherins? I won' be able to stop myself and you'll have to hold me back, then Malfoy would _know_ somethin's up. It wouldn' be right for a Slytherin to try and fight him for sayin' somethin' he always does around them. Not to mention the Polyjuice Potion'll change the sound of my voice, but it won' change _how_ I talk. I'll still have my normal accent and all, and despite bein' here a year, I ain't picked up the accent yet."

Hermione seemed to think it over as she sat on her bed, looking over at Bryt. Bryt bit her lower lip, starting to fiddle with her bracelet again.

"You're right," Hermione finally said, "We can't risk you coming, there's no telling what could happen."

"I'll stay and keep an eye on the potion or somethin'," Bryt said, relieved that Hermione understood, "Or get rid of what's left over while you're gone, keep an eye out in the room."

"We should tell the guys tomorrow," Hermione added.

Bryt nodded again, wondering how Ron and Harry'd react to her deciding not to take the potion.

To Bryt's surprise, they took it well. After Bryt explained why she was deciding not to take the potion, they had agreed it was a good idea. The last thing they needed was for them to have to restrain Bryt in the middle of their interrogation, or for her to give away her American Southerner accent. So, it was set that if they had any of the potion left over, Bryt was to flush it down one of the toilets and wait in the bathroom for the others to return with the news of their interrogation. Maybe she'd take her books on creatures and try to find any idea of what would be in the Chamber.

Knowing she wouldn't be able to help with the interrogation made the wait for the holidays seem longer for Bryt. Fortunately for her, there was something that would help distract her.

Bryt, Harry, Ron, and Hermione had been heading across the entrance hall when they noticed a crowd around the notice board. They started their way over when Seamus and Dean grinned, motioning them to come closer.

"They're starting a Dueling Club!" Seamus grinned, "First meeting tonight! I wouldn't mind dueling lessons; they might come in handy one of these days..."

"What, you reckon Slytherin's monster can duel?" Ron asked, then yelped when Bryt stomped on his foot.

"Why do you keep _doing_ that?" Ron hissed.

"Because you keep bein' a smart ass," Bryt smirked, then turned to read over the post before following her friends into the Great Hall.

"Dueling lessons could be useful, though," Ron spoke up after a minute, "Shall we go?"

Bryt nodded and Harry and Hermione seemed interested, too, so at eight, they went with the crowd of students back to the Great Hall. The four long tables had been replaced by a single, golden stage along one of the walls. It seemed most of the school had turned up for the lessons and there was a buzz of excitement in the air.

"I wonder who'll be teaching us?" Hermione asked when they reached the crowd, "Someone told me Flitwick was a dueling champion when he was young—maybe it's him."

"As long as it's not—" Harry cut off with a groan and Bryt looked over to see Lockhart walking onto the stage, Snape right behind him. Bryt huffed at the idea of Snape teaching them, but she was excited to see Lockhart in a duel.

"Gather round, gather round!" Lockhart waved his hand in the air to silence the crowd, "Can everyone see me? Can you all hear me? Excellent!

"Now, Professor Dumbledore has granted me permission to start this little dueling club, to train you all in case you ever need to defend yourselves as I myself have done on countless occasions—for full details, see my published works.

"Let me introduce my assistant, Professor Snape," Lockhart continued with a smile, "He tells me he knows a tiny bit about dueling himself and has sportingly agreed to help me with a short demonstration before we begin. Now, I don't want you any of you youngsters to worry—you'll still have your Potions master when I'm through with him, never fear!"

Bryt stood on her toes to get a better look over a fellow second-year's shoulder. She was usually okay with being so short, but times like this, as she tried to get a better look at the smile on Lockhart's face, she could really hate being small.

Lockhart and Snape faced each other on the stage and Snape made a jerking motion with his head while Lockhart gave a swooping bow. Then, they both raised their wands as if they were holding swords.

"As you can see," Lockhart said, "We are holding our wands in the accepted combative position. On the count of three, we will cast our first spells. Neither of us will be aiming to kill, of course."

"I wouldn't bet on that," Harry whispered and Bryt stood further on her toes, leaning forward to see Snape's snarl.

"One—two—three—"

Both teachers moved quickly, pointing their wands at each other, but Snape had been faster. He shouted "_Expeliarmus_!" and there was a flash of red light. Lockhart was suddenly thrown backwards off the stage and into the wall, sliding to the floor.

"Is he okay?" Bryt asked in a rush, trying to see over her classmates heads while Slytherins began cheering.

"Who cares?" Harry and Ron chorused. Bryt and Hermione both spun around and glared at their friends.

Lockhart got to his feet, his wand gone and his hair a mess, and made his way back to the stage. Bryt and Hermione both sighed in relief, seeing he was okay.

"Well, there you have it!" Lockhart called, "That was a Disarming Charm—as you see, I've lost my wand—ah, thank you, Miss Brown—yes, an excellent idea to show them that, Professor Snape, but if you don't mind my saying so, it was very obvious what you were about to do. If I had wanted to stop you, it would have been only too easy—however, I felt it would be instructive to let them see..."

Lockhart had trailed off at the look of pure hatred on Snape's face. He cleared his throat and continued quickly. Bryt glared at her Potions professor before looking back over at Lockhart.

"Enough demonstrating! I'm going to come amongst you now and put you all into pairs. Professor Snape, if you'd like to help me—"

As the two teachers moved through the crowd, Bryt hovered near Hermione in hopes that Lockhart would reach them first and pair them together, but Snape had come over to them, Harry, and Ron first.

"Time to split up the dream team, I think," he said, "Weasley, you can partner with Finnigan. Potter—"

Harry had started moving over towards Bryt and Hermione and Bryt started to grin.

"I don't think so," Snape started to get a cold smile on his face, "Mr. Malfoy, come over here. Let's see what you make of the famous Potter. And you, Miss Granger—you can partner Miss Bulstrode. Miss Watkins, you can partner with Miss Parkinson."

Malfoy made his way over with a smirk, tailed by Pansy Parkinson and another Slytherin girl who had a large build and a heavy jawline. Hermione smiled weakly, but Millicent Bulstrode didn't return the grin and Bryt simply glared at Pansy.

"Face your partners!" Lockhart called, making his way back to the stage, "And bow!"

Bryt gripped her wand, attempting a bow without taking her eyes off Pansy. This would have been a lot more enjoyable if she were paired with Hermione.

"Wands at the ready!" Lockhart called, "When I count to three, cast your charms to disarm your opponents—_only_ to disarm them—we don't want any accidents—one...two...three—"

Bryt tried to imitate Snape earlier in the Disarming Charm, but Pansy had something else in mind and Bryt was knocked backwards, right into Millicent and Hermione. Bryt recovered herself, deciding to ignore her wand and went straight at Pansy, her hand clutched into a fist.

"_I said disarm only_!" Lockhart was calling over the crowd, but no one seemed to be listening. Bryt had just reached Pansy and slugged the girl in the face, luckily it went unnoticed by Snape on the other side of the room. Pansy had retaliated, though, and soon the two girls were wrestling on the floor.

It seemed the entire room was in a state of chaos. As Pansy got a handful of Bryt's ponytail and yanked, the blonde kicked up, throwing the girl off of her. As Bryt pushed herself up, she couldn't help but think that this wasn't what she had expected when she came for the Dueling Club.


	12. Double Attack

"Stop! Stop!" Lockhart was shouting as chaos raged through the Great Hall.

"_Finite Incantatem_!" Snape suddenly called and silence fell over the group, along with a misty green haze. Bryt stumbled to her feet, glaring at Pansy a few feet away.

Bryt, then, looked around and noticed Neville and Justin were panting and Ron was helping up Seamus, who was covered in some type of soot. Ron's wand must have backfired again. Millicent nearby had Hermione in a headlock and Harry and Bryt both rushed over to help free her.

"Dear, dear," Lockhart sighed, moving through the crowd, "Up you go, Macmillan...Careful there, Miss Fawcett...Pinch it hard, it'll stop bleeding in a second, Boot—

"I think I'd better teach you how to _block_ unfriendly spells," Lockhart looked to Snape for a second before turning back to the crowd, "Let's have a volunteer pair—Longbottom and Finch-Fletchley, how about you—"

"A bad idea, Professor Lockhart," Snape cut in, "Longbottom causes devastation with the simplest spells. We'll be sending what's left of Finch-Fletchley up to the hospital wing in a matchbox. How about Malfoy and Potter?"

"Excellent idea!" Lockhart agreed, motioning for Harry and Malfoy to come to the middle of the Great Hall.

Bryt moved to the front of the crowd with Hermione and Ron to get a better look. Lockhart was making some movement with his wand that Bryt guessed was a spell while Snape was leaning close to Malfoy, whispering something to him. Once Harry and Malfoy seemed ready, Lockhart and Snape took a step back and Lockhart cleared his throat.

"Three—two—one—go!"

"_Serpensortia_!" Malfoy shouted, raising his wand.

Bryt, and the rest of the crowd, sunk back as a long, black snake shot out of Malfoy's wand, falling to the floor and raising its head, seeming ready to strike at anything that got close to it. There was a mix of gasps and screams from the students around them.

"Don't move, Potter," Snape spoke up, seeming to enjoy the moment, "I'll get rid of it..."

"Allow me!" Lockhart moved forward, pulling out his wand. There was a loud bang and, instead of disappearing, the snake shot into the air, then fell back to the ground. It only seemed angrier now and started moving towards one area of the crowd, straight for Justin Finch-Fletchley.

Suddenly, Harry started moving towards the snake. He opened his mouth to talk, but instead of words, a string of eerie hissing left Harry's mouth and his tone had a distinct edge, as if he were encouraging the snake. Bryt's eyes widened and her mouth fell open as she stared at Harry, her breath catching in her throat. She had found out from Hermione what a Parselmouth was after reading about it in one of her books on creatures, and it was a complete shock finding out that Harry held the trait of a Dark wizard. It seemed almost impossible, yet there he was, talking to the snake. Bryt gulped, taking a shaky breath as she looked over at Justin, who looked extremely pale. Bryt couldn't blame him.

"What do you think you're playing at?" Justin shouted before hurrying out of the Great Hall. Bryt couldn't blame him, not after what had just happened.

Snape pulled out his wand, making the snake vanish before looking at Harry with an odd expression. People began whispering all round the crowd and Bryt finally forced herself to move, heading to Harry with Hermione and Ron, tugging lightly at Harry's robes.

"Come on," Ron whispered to Harry, "Move—come _on_—"

Ron pulled Harry from the room, Hermione and Bryt following. People cleared out of the way for the group, obviously frightened over what had just happened. The group didn't stop until they had reached the Gryffindor common room, which was luckily empty. Ron shoved Harry down into an armchair.

"You're a Parselmouth," Ron said, "Why didn't you tell us?"

"I'm a what?" Harry asked.

"You can talk to snakes!" Bryt said, her voice weak. She couldn't get the eerie hissing noise Harry had made out of her head. She shivered slightly just thinking about it.

"I know," Harry replied, "I mean, that's only the second time I've ever done it. I accidentally set a boa constrictor on my cousin Dudley at the zoo once—long story—but it was telling me it had never seen Brazil and I sort of set it free without meaning to—that was before I knew I was a wizard—"

"A boa constrictor told you it had never seen Brazil?" Ron asked, his voice quiet.

"So?" Harry asked, "I bet loads of people here can do it."

"Nuh-uh," Bryt shook her head slowly, "This ain't a good thing."

"Why?" Harry asked, "What's wrong with everyone? Listen, if I hadn't told that snake not to attack Justin—"

"Oh, that's what you said to it?" Ron asked.

"What d'you mean? You were there—you heard me—"

"I heard you speaking Parseltongue," Ron replied, "Snake language. You could have said anything—no wonder Justin panicked, you sounded like you were egging the snake on or something—it was creepy, you know—"

Harry was staring at them in shock.

"I spoke a different language? But—I didn't realize—how can I speak a language without knowing I can speak it?"

Ron only shook his head. Bryt was staring at Harry in worry now. He had no idea he had been speaking Parseltongue...Somehow, that unnerved Bryt more than the idea her best friend had such a dark skill.

"D'you want to tell me what's wrong with stopping a massive snake from biting off Justin's head?" Harry asked, still confused, "What does it matter _how_ I did it as long as Justin doesn't have to join the Headless Hunt?"

"It matters," Hermione spoke up quietly, "Because being able to talk to snakes was what Salazar Slytherin was famous for. That's why the symbol of Slytherin House is a serpent."

Harry's face was suddenly shocked, his mouth hanging open. Bryt noticed he finally realized what was going on.

"Exactly," Ron said, noticing Harry's expression, "And now the whole school's going to think you're his great-great-great-great-grandson or something—"

"But I'm not," Harry said, his voice panicked.

"You'll find that hard to prove," Hermione said, "He lived about a thousand years ago; for all we know, you could be."

The four friends went to bed soon after that, Bryt thinking over what had happened at the Dueling Club. This day had not been very great. She was unable to sleep that night, so she stayed sitting up on her bed, staring out the window. She couldn't get what happened at the Duel Club out of her head and Harry being a Parselmouth.

Bryt sighed, closing her eyes and leaning her forehead against her knees.

"Bryt?"

Bryt jerked her head up and noticed Hermione sitting up in her bed, staring at her.

"Can't sleep either?" Bryt whispered.

"No," Hermione shook her head, slipping out of her bed and glancing over at Lavender and Parvati before sitting on the edge of Bryt's bed, "I keep thinking about the Duel Club."

"Me too," Bryt sighed, "I can't believe it...How can Harry be a Parselmouth? How can someone so nice have such a horrible..."

"Do...Do you think he could really be..." Hermione trailed off, but Bryt knew what she was thinking. Bryt immediately shook her head violently.

"I refuse to believe Harry might be the Heir of Slytherin," she said, "There's no way. He's nothin' like the Slytherins."

Though, as Bryt said it, she couldn't keep the doubt out of the back of her mind. After all, someone could be good, but have some evil ancestor. Personalities weren't usually inheritable. She only had to look at Sofí for that. Practically all of the Garcías were relatively calm, normal people, but Sofí was as wild and chaotic as they came. Sighing, Bryt tried to banish the thought of Harry being related to Salazar Slytherin.

"Let's just hope the Polyjuice Potion will get us answers," Hermione whispered after several minutes of silence.

Bryt nodded in agreement as she looked back out the window at the thick snow falling.

The next day started off a little better. A blizzard had hit during the night, which left their last Herbology class of the term canceled. Bryt took the chance to relax, stretching herself out on a couch and keeping her eyes closed, trying to catch up on the sleep she missed the night before. Harry, however, was preventing this by complaining about not getting to explain everything to Justin. Bryt finally got fed up and got to her feet, grabbing Harry by the arm and pulling him up as well.

"Bryt! What're you doing?" Harry asked.

"I'm tired of hearin' you complain," Bryt said, starting to pull Harry from the common room, "We're gonna go find Justin."

"And where do you think he is?" Harry asked as they moved through the blizzard-darkened castle.

"Probably the library," Bryt shrugged, "If anythin', we'll run into a Hufflepuff who knows where he is."

When Bryt and Harry finally reached the library, Bryt noticed a group of Hufflepuffs were sitting together in the back, talking in low voices. Harry and Bryt started over, noticing Justin wasn't with them. When the two could hear what the Hufflepuffs were saying, though, Harry grabbed Bryt's arm and pulled her behind some shelves nearby.

"So anyway," one Hufflepuff was saying, "I told Justin to hide up in our dormitory. I mean to say, if Potter's marked him down as his next victim, it's best if he keeps a low profile for a while. Of course, Justin's been waiting for something like this to happen ever since he let slip to Potter he was Muggleborn. Justin actually _told_ him he'd been down for Eton. That's not the kind of thing you bandy about with Slytherin's heir on the loose, is it?"

"You definitely think it _is_ Potter, then, Ernie?" a blonde Hufflepuff asked.

"Hannah, he's a Parselmouth. Everyone knows that's the mark of a Dark wizard. Have you ever heard of a decent one who could talk to snakes? They called Slytherin himself Serpent-tongue." Ernie paused while the rest started talking too lowly for Bryt to hear, then he continued. "Remember what was written on the wall? _Enemies of the Heir, Beware_. Potter had some sort of run-in with Filch. Next thing we know, Filch's cat's attacked. That first year, Creevey, was annoying Potter at the Quidditch match, trying to take pictures while he was laying in the mud. Next thing we know—Creevey's been attacked."

"He always seemed so nice, though," Hannah replied, "And, well, he's the one who made You-Know-Who disappear. He can't be all bad, can he?"

"No one knows how he survived that attack by You-Know-Who," Ernie was talking so low now that Bryt was leaning forward to hear, "I mean to say, he was only a baby when it happened. He should have been blasted into smithereens. Only a really powerful Dark wizard could have survived a curse like that." Ernie dropped his voice even more. "_That's_ probably why You-Know-Who wanted to kill him in the first place. Didn't want another Dark Lord _competing_ with him. I wonder what other powers Potter's been hiding?"

Bryt, who had been glaring at the group, felt something brush past her and she realized Harry had moved out from behind the shelves towards the Hufflepuffs. Bryt hurried along behind, watching the terrified looks on the students' faces at the sight of Harry.

"Hello," Harry said, "I'm looking for Justin Finch-Fletchley."

All of the Hufflepuffs turned towards Ernie.

"What do you want with him?" Ernie's voice was shaking.

"I wanted to tell him what really happened with that snake at the Dueling Club," Harry answered.

"We were all there," Ernie seemed to be trying to sound brave, "We saw what happened."

"Then you noticed that after I spoke to it, the snake backed off?"

"All I saw was you speaking Parseltongue and chasing the snake toward Justin."

"He didn' chase the snake towards Justin!" Bryt snapped, clenching her hands into fists, "That snake didn' get near him."

"It was a very near miss," Ernie said, "I don't know why you're still hanging around Potter. It's only a matter of time before—"

"Say another word and I swear I'll break your nose," Bryt snapped, grabbing onto Harry's arm, "Let's go."

Bryt didn't give Harry a chance to reply, dragging him from the library.

"Bryt, let me go," Harry said.

Bryt obeyed, sighing.

"Sorry," she said, "He just...what he said just ticked me off. I was afraid I'd hit him."

"No kidding, like I'd ever do anything to you," Harry suddenly smirked, "You'd murder me if I tried."

Bryt laughed, thinking Harry was probably right.

"Let's get back to the common room," she said, starting off. She barely made it a few feet, though, when she noticed Hagrid coming along the hallway.

"Hello, Hagrid," Bryt grinned.

"All righ', Harry, Bryt?" Hagrid grinned, "Why aren't yeh in class?"

"Canceled," Harry said, "What're you doing up here?"

Bryt noticed Hagrid was carrying a dead rooster.

"Second one killed this term," Hagrid said, "It's either foxes or a Blood-Suckin' Bugbear. An' I need the Headmaster's permission ter put a charm around the hen coop."

Hagrid was studying Harry now and Bryt glanced over to see he looked bothered by something.

"Yeh sure yeh're all righ'?" Hagrid asked, "Yeh look all hot an' bothered—"

"It's nothing," Harry said, "We have to go, Hagrid. We have Transfiguration next and we should get our books."

"Bye, Hagrid," Bryt grinned, following off behind Harry, who was moving quickly up a stairway, "Harry, slow down."

Bryt shivered when they got into a dark corridor where the candles had been blown out by a broken window. She wrapped her robes around her, squinting and hurrying to catch up to Harry ahead until she saw him fall over. Bryt hurried over to him, starting to help Harry up, but stumbled to a stop and threw her hands over her mouth when she noticed what, or more-so _who_, Harry had tripped over. Laying across the corridor floor was the Petrified form of Justin Finch-Fletchley.

"Oh no," Bryt gasped, then noticed something out of the corner of her eye and glanced up to see Nearly Headless Nick floating nearby, but he wasn't moving. His color had gone from transparent white to a smoky black and his head was hanging at an angle, both he and Justin had looks of shock on their faces.

Harry got to his feet and looked at Bryt, looking as horrified as she felt. Both of them seemed frozen with fear, unable to move. Bryt's heart loudly pounding in her ears and the buzzing of classes all around them were the only things breaking the silence.

A door bang open and both students jumped, turning to see Peeves flying out.

"Why, it's potty wee Potter!" Peeves didn't seem to notice Bryt, or either didn't care with Harry there, "What's Potter up to? Why's Potter lurking—" Peeves stopped in mid-somersault as he noticed Justin and Nearly Headless Nick. He straightened himself up, took a deep breath, then started yelling. "ATTACK! ATTACK! ANOTHER ATTACK! NO MORTAL OR GHOST IS SAFE! RUN FOR YOUR LIVES! ATTAAAACK!"

Doors all along the corridor flung open and students and teachers started piling into the dark hallway. Bryt and Harry ended up shoved against the wall in the chaos and people were starting to trip over Justin and walk through Nick. There was suddenly a loud bang and Bryt turned to see McGonagall had shown up. Everyone was just starting to clear away when Ernie showed up. He paled and pointed right at Harry.

"_Caught in the act_!" he yelled.

"That will do, Macmillan!" McGonagall said.

Peeves seemed to enjoying the mayhem he caused. While the teachers were examining Nick and Justing, Peeves began singing overhead.

"_Oh, Potter, you rotter, oh what have you done,  
You're killing off students, you think it's good fun_—"

"That's enough, Peeves!" McGonagall snapped. Peeves finally flew off, but not before sticking her tongue out at Harry.

Two of the teachers took Justin to the hospital wing and McGonagall conjured up a fan for Ernie to fan Nick to the hospital wing as well. By the time they were gone, the students had left as well, leaving Bryt and Harry alone with their Transfiguration teacher.

"This way, Potter. Miss Watkins, you should come as well," McGonagall said, starting off.

"Harry didn' do anythin', Professor," Bryt said, starting after McGonagall.

"This is out of my hands," McGonagall said.

Bryt and Harry exchanged a glance before continuing on in silence. They only stopped when they reached the statue of a very ugly gargoyle. Bryt was wondering why they had stopped there, but then McGonagall made it clear.

"Lemon drop," McGonagall said to the statue and it suddenly hopped away, the wall behind it opening to reveal a moving, spiral staircase.

McGonagall stepped onto the staircase and Bryt and Harry followed, it slowly moving them upward until they reached a oak door with a griffin on it. Bryt gulped and exchanged a large look with Harry as she realized where they were. They had just been taken to Dumbledore's office.


	13. Christmas Plans

Bryt was biting her lower lip, twisting her bracelet, which she had slipped off her wrist, in her hands as they stepped off the moving staircase. McGonagall knocked on the door and it opened slowly. Then, the told Harry and Bryt to wait inside and she left.

Bryt gulped and stepped into the office with Harry, looking around. Unlike in Lockhart's office, Bryt's nervousness didn't keep her from being in awe of everything, though it may have been because Dumbledore wasn't there at the moment, so Bryt and Harry were alone. Either way, Dumbledore's office was amazing. The large, circular room was filled with strange objects emitting just-as-strange noises and puffs of smoke. Bryt looked around the walls at the portraits of former headmasters and headmistresses, all of whom were asleep at the moment. Then, she looked over to Dumbledore's claw-footed desk and noticed the Sorting Hat was on a shelf behind it.

Bryt continued looking around the office with her mouth hanging open in awe, wanting to take in everything she could. Her eyes suddenly widened when she noticed a creature standing on a gold perch by the door. Bryt slowly walked over to it, studying its pathetic appearance and the strange noises it was making.

"Harry, Harry come look at this!" Bryt breathed, slipping her bracelet back around her wrist as she waved Harry over, "I think it's a phoenix! It looks like it's about to burn, though."

Bryt didn't look to see if Harry had even heard her as she studied the bird, grinning to herself.

"You're wrong," Harry suddenly said, causing Bryt to jump and she turned to see Harry staring at the Sorting Hat.

"Harry, I've read about phoenixes, I'm pretty sure this is one," Bryt replied and Harry turned to her, seeming confused. He recovered himself, though, and made his way over to where Bryt was and stared at the bird.

"How can something so pitiful be a phoenix?" Harry asked.

"He's probably about to—" Bryt suddenly cut off as the bird burst into a ball of flames. Bryt stared in awe as it gave a loud shriek, then became a pile of ashes.

At that moment, the door opened and Dumbledore came in. Bryt noticed that he didn't look very happy. Bryt swallowed as the reason why they were there came back to her and she bit her lower lip, starting to feel anxious again.

"Professor," Harry started up, "Your bird—I couldn't do anything—he just caught fire—"

Dumbledore gave a smile and Bryt grinned, despite herself.

"About time, too," Dumbledore commented, "He's been looking dreadful for days, I've been telling him to get a move on."

"He's a phoenix, right, sir?" Bryt asked.

"Yes, Miss Watkins," Dumbledore said, "Fawkes is indeed a phoenix. I am sure you know what just happened?"

"He burst into flames at the end of that life cycle and he'll come back as a baby in the ashes," Bryt said, feeling proud of herself. The only two things she was really good at were potions and facts on creatures. She never got to show her skill much in Potions with Snape, so it felt good being able to give answers in confidence. Bryt couldn't help but wonder if this was what Hermione felt like in all their classes.

"Correct again," Dumbledore said, "Just watch him."

Bryt and Harry both turned back to the pile of ashes and Bryt grinned when she noticed a tiny newborn bird poked its head from the ashes.

"It's a shame you had to see him on a Burning Day," Dumbledore took a seat at his desk, "He's really very handsome most of the time, wonderful red and gold plumage. Fascinating creatures, phoenixes. They can carry immensely heavy loads, their tears have healing powers, and they make highly _faithful_ pets."

"I thought the burnin' was fascinatin' to watch, sir," Bryt spoke up. She found herself grinning as she wondered what Hermione would say when Bryt told her she got to watch a phoenix burn and be reborn.

Dumbledore gave a nod before looking between the two students. Bryt, once again, remembered why they were there and her grin faded. She slipped her bracelet from her wrist again, beginning to fiddle with it between her hands. Dumbledore opened his mouth to say something, but the door burst open behind them and Hagrid came in, the dead rooster he had earlier was still clutched in his hand.

"It wasn' Harry, Professor Dumbledore!" Hagrid said, "I was talkin' ter him and Bryt _seconds_ before that kid was found, he never had time, sir—"

Dumbledore tried to speak up, but Hagrid was determined not to be interrupted. Rooster feathers were flying everywhere in the room.

"—It can't've bin him, I'll swear it in front o' the Ministry o' Magic if I have to—"

"Hagrid, I—"

"—Yeh've got the wrong boy, sir, I _know_ Harry never—"

"_Hagrid_!" Dumbledore finally cut in, "I do _not_ think that Harry attacked those people."

"Oh," Hagrid let his arms fall back to his side, "Right, I'll wait outside then, Headmaster."

Bryt watched as Hagrid left the room, then turned to Dumbledore.

"You don't think it was me, Professor?" Harry asked, sounding hopeful.

"No, Harry, I don't," Dumbledore said, "But I still want to talk to you. Miss Watkins, please wait outside with Hagrid."

Bryt nodded, though confused, and stepped out of the office. Surprisingly, she had barely slipped her bracelet back on and straightened out her robes when Harry came out, saying they should get to class. Bryt nodded, confused again, and said goodbye to Hagrid before following Harry. She couldn't help but wonder why McGonagall had brought Bryt to the office if she was just going to be sent back out. Finally, Bryt guessed it was because she had simply been with Harry when they had found Nearly Headless Nick and Justin Petrified.

Bryt never got a chance to tell Hermione about Fawkes. The story of the double attack had seemed to spread through the entire school before Harry and Bryt had even reached the common room and a new panic was rising, after all, what could attack a ghost? The last few who had signed up to remain at Hogwarts were now changing their minds to go home. Bryt, Harry, Hermione, the Weasleys, and Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle were still signed up to stay, though. Ron wasn't too happy about the arrangement, but Bryt thought it gave them a better chance of using the Polyjuice Potion over the holidays, and Hermione had agreed.

**-----**

"Y'know, we're gonna have to have a way for Harry and Ron to get hairs from Crabbe and Goyle," Bryt told Hermione on the first night of their holidays, when the two girls were getting ready for bed.

"I've thought about that," Hermione said, "And what could happen if the real Crabbe and Goyle show up while we're interrogating Malfoy."

"Any plans?" Bryt asked, plopping down on her bed.

"Well..." Hermione started, sitting on her own bed, "I was thinking of giving them a Sleeping Draught, not a really powerful one, just one to keep them away for a couple of hours."

"And how exactly are we gonna get Sleeping Draught?" Bryt asked, "I mean, there might be some in the Hospital Wing, but I seriously doubt we'll be able to steal any. We don' even know where Madam Pomfrey keeps her stuff."

"We could make some. I mean, the ingredients should be in the student cupboard..."

"And if they ain't?" Bryt asked.

"I'll think of something," Hermione wrinkled her brow in thought, "Don't worry."

Luckily, it didn't come to needing a new plan. Bryt and Hermione could easily get the ingredients for a simple Sleeping Draught, and were able to get one brewed up, finishing it on Christmas Eve. The girls were able to brew up this potion in their dormitory since Lavender and Parvati weren't there, which made things a lot easier on them.

When Christmas morning came, Bryt and Hermione seemed to have woken up at the same time.

"Merry Christmas," Bryt grinned, stretching and going ahead and getting dressed for the day, pulling on a pair of jeans and her favorite fiery orange sweater. After she pulled her hair into a long pigtail, she sat back down on her bed to go through her presents. Hermione had dressed as well, and was now opening her own presents.

Bryt received a box of candy canes and chocolates from home. From Sofí and Julio, she had gotten a new photo album and a letter on how they expected to see it filled the next time they saw her. Hermione gave Bryt a candle that smelled like vanilla, which Bryt immediately thanked her for, slightly surprised that Hermione remembered Bryt saying she liked scented candles over the summer holidays. Harry had given her a book on dragons and Ron gave her a book on Quidditch teams. Hagrid had sent her a tin of treacle fudge, which she decided not to try and eat without somehow softening them up.

"Bryt, it's cute!" Hermione said and Bryt looked up from her dragon book to see Hermione had just opened her present and was holding up a pale lavender teddy bear.

"I wasn' sure you'd like it," Bryt grinned a little, hunching up her shoulders, "I saw it in a store while in Charleston, and...I thought gettin' you a book would be kinda...well...I wanted to do somethin' different."

Hermione grinned, going pink in the face. She, then, glanced down at her watch. "Maybe we can check up on the potion before greeting the boys."

Bryt nodded and stood up, pulling out the two small packages that were Harry and Ron's gifts and put them in her pocket as she followed Hermione downstairs. It was still early, so everyone seemed to still be asleep. Bryt and Hermione left the common room and went straight for Moaning Myrtle's bathroom to check up on the potion. Bryt began adding some more lacewings and looked it over, noticing the potion was beginning to look like a mess of mud in the cauldron.

"I think it's done, 'mione," Bryt said, "It looks how it says it should."

Hermione nodded, grinning as the put the Sleeping Draught in two small chocolate cakes. "Let's go tell the guys."

Bryt nodded, heading out with Hermione and straight back to the Gryffindor common room. They headed up the stairs for the boys' dormitories and right into Harry and Ron's room. Bryt pulled out the presents for her friends as Hermione yanked open the window curtains, calling for Ron and Harry to wake up.

Both boys awoke instantly, Harry sitting up and fumbling for his glasses. Ron was trying to block out the light.

"Merry Christmas, boys!" Bryt grinned.

She gave both of her friends a kiss on the cheek as she dropped her present on their piles before sitting on the edge of Ron's bed. She felt something squirm next to her hand and let lout a loud squeal, moving backwards so fast she fell to the floor.

"Bryt, it's just Scabbers!" Ron exclaimed, picking up the rat.

Bryt stumbled to her feet, backing away quickly as she glared at the rat in Ron's hand, heat rising to her face. It didn't matter to her that it was 'just Scabbers'. It was still a disgusting, vile creature to her that she didn't want anywhere near her.

"By the way," Hermione spoke up, seemingly trying to spare Bryt, "The potion's ready."

"Are you sure?" Harry asked and Bryt gave Hermione a grateful look.

"Positive," Hermione replied, grinning a little towards Bryt, "If we're going to do it, I say it should be tonight."

Hedwig flew into the room, then, dropping a small package into Harry's lap. Harry petted her and Bryt grinned, watching her friends open their other presents before heading down for the day.

Bryt enjoyed her Christmas, despite what would be happening that night. The Great Hall was decorated with a dozen of frost-covered trees and streamers of holly and mistletoe were strung across the ceiling that reflected the light snowfall outside. Bryt kept giggling every time she saw Percy since his prefect badge now read 'Pinhead', which Bryt guessed was thanks to Fred and George. Percy couldn't understand what everyone thought was so funny and Bryt didn't want to tell him. Besides, she was too preoccupied with singing the Christmas Carols that Dumbledore kept starting off. There was a great mood surrounding the Great Hall and Bryt thought that holidays at Hogwarts were much better than being at home. She would have to stay the next year, too, if her parents let her.

After eating several helpings of pudding, Hermione motioned for Bryt, Ron, and Harry to head out of the Great Hall with her.

"We still need a bit of the people you're changing into," Hermione said simply, as if this were a common task, "And obviously, it'll be best if you can get something of Crabbe's and Goyle's; they're Malfoy's best friends, he'll tell them anything. And we also need to make sure the real Crabbe and Goyle can't burst in on us while we're interrogating him."

"That's where these come in," Bryt cut in, holding up the small chocolate cakes, "Hermione and I did a sleepin' potion and put them in the cakes. Just make sure Crabbe and Goyle find 'em. Once they're unconscious, just take a few of their hairs."

"Girls, I don't think—" Harry started.

"That could go seriously wrong—" Ron added.

"The potion won' work without the hairs," Bryt cut in, shoving the cakes into her friends' hands.

"You do _want_ to interrogate Malfoy, don't you?" Hermione added.

"Oh, all right, all right," Harry sighed, "But what about you, Hermione? Whose hair are you ripping out?"

"I've already got mine!" Hermione said, pulling out a bottled hair from her pocket, "Remember Millicent Bulstrode wrestling with me at the Dueling Club? She left this on my robes when she was trying to strangle me! And she's gone home for Christmas—so I'll just have to tell the Slytherins I've decided to come back."

Hermione hurried off and Bryt waved to Harry and Ron before following. Bryt cut off from Hermione and headed towards the dungeon where she sneaked towards the laundry and got three sets of larger robes before hurrying back to Moaning Myrtle's bathroom. When she entered, she heard Myrtle in the far stall and gave an inward sigh of relief. No matter how much time they had been spending in the bathroom, Bryt still didn't like the ghosts of Hogwarts. She went over to the stall where they had been making the potion and knocked.

"I got the robes, Hermione."

Hermione emerged from the stall, grinning and helped Bryt separate them out. Bryt went to check on the potion again just as Ron and Harry came into the bathroom.

"Did you get them?" Bryt heard Hermione ask, and it seemed the boys just showed Hermione the hairs because she continued, "Good. Bryt sneaked these spare robes out of the laundry. You'll need bigger sizes once you're Crabbe and Goyle."

Bryt glanced over her shoulder to see her friends were just outside the stall. She looked back at the bubbling cauldron of mud-like liquid.

"It looks like the book says," Bryt said, starting to separate the potion into three waiting glasses, "So I'm sure we did everythin' right. Once you drink the potion, you'll have an hour before you start to change back."

"What'll you be doing again?" Harry asked as Bryt handed out the glasses.

"Readin' through some of my books to see if any creature has the power to Petrify," Bryt said, "You three better take separate stalls and add the hairs."

Bryt squeezed out of the stall, deciding to go get her book from her room. She slipped out of the bathroom and headed through the castle to the Gryffindor common room. She went up to her dormitory and grabbed one of her books on creatures before heading back to Myrtle's bathroom. When she got back, she thought the bathroom was empty, but then she heard Moaning Myrtle doing something unexpected: laughing.

"What's got you in such a good mood, Myrtle?" Bryt asked as the ghost came flying out of one of the closed stalls.

"Wait until you see!" Moaning Myrtle said, "It's so awful!"

Bryt blinked and went to the stall, knocking on it.

"Go away!" Hermione's voice came from the other side, which surprised Bryt. Hermione should have taken the potion, she should be sounding like Millicent...and be down in the Slytherin common room with Harry and Ron.

"Hermione, did somethin' go wrong with the potion? Where're Ron and Harry?"

"The potion worked," Hermione replied, "They went to question Malfoy."

"Why're you still here, then?"

There was a long pause, then Bryt heard the stall door unlock and Hermione slowly opened it. Bryt's eyes widened and she nearly dropped her book at the sight her friend.

"You used an animal hair?" she asked, staring at Hermione's appearance. She was covered in black fur, her eyes had turned yellow, and there were two black cat ears poking through her bushy hair.

"You'll be teased something _dreadful_," Myrtle said cheerfully. Bryt glared at the ghost before looking at Hermione.

"What are we going to do?" Hermione asked.

Bryt bit her lower lip, racking her brain for an answer as she looked over Hermione's cat-like appearance. Suddenly, an idea popped into her head.

"We'll go to Madam Pomfrey," Bryt said, "We'll tell her we were tryin' a transfiguration spell and it backfired. That should be believable enough."

Hermione didn't want to leave the bathroom, but Bryt finally convinced her. They headed to the hospital wing and Madam Pomfrey seemed to buy their story. If she didn't believe them, though, she didn't press the matter.

"What am I going to do?" Hermione groaned, "There's no telling how long I'll be like this...What about our classes?"

"You're half-cat and you're worried about schoolwork?" Bryt blinked.

"I can't fall behind!"

Bryt sighed, fighting the urge to roll her eyes.

"Okay, I'll make sure to get the assignments for yah, don' worry."

"Oh, thank you!" even with a now cat-face, Hermione's relief still showed through.

Bryt stayed with Hermione until it was almost time for Harry and Ron to come back and she left for Moaning Myrtle's bathroom. She had just leaned against a wall to wait when Harry and Ron burst back in.

"We've got loads to tell you!" Ron said.

"Where's Hermione?" Harry asked.

"Hospital wing," Bryt explained, "She accidentally used a cat hair. To put it simply, she looks like a human cat right now. C'mon, we'll go back to the hospital wing when you change and you can tell me and Hermione together."

Bryt waited while Ron and Harry changed back into their robes, then the three headed to the hospital wing. Both boys stared at Hermione for several moments before they finally got over the fact she had fur and a tail, then they pulled chairs over and in a whisper, began explaining what they had learned from Malfoy.

"He's not the heir," Harry said, "And he doesn't know who is, but he told us that the last time the Chamber was opened was fifty years ago. A Muggleborn was killed and the person who was behind it was caught, but Malfoy didn't know who it was."

"I was sure it was gonna be him," Bryt sighed, sinking back. All that work and they were back where they started. Bryt couldn't help but wonder if they had just spent over a month breaking so many school rules to make a potion for nothing.


	14. Valentine's Day

It was some time before the fur finally vanished from Hermione's face and her eyes were slowly beginning to turn brown again. Because she spent so long in the hospital wing, other students were beginning to think she had been Petrified and were often trying to get a look at her in the hospital wing, but Madam Pomfrey had pulled the curtains around Hermione's bed.

Bryt, Harry, and Ron made a point to spend every afternoon they could with Hermione, always bringing Hermione's classwork with them.

"If I'd sprouted whiskers," Ron said one afternoon as he dumped Hermione's books on the nightstand, "I'd take a break from work."

"Don't be silly, Ron, I've got to keep up," Hermione replied simply as Bryt sat next to Hermione on the bed and Hermione glanced around before whispering, "I don't suppose you've got any new leads?"

"Sorry," Bryt sighed, "I was so sure it would be Malfoy..."

"What is that?" Harry started to reach for something gold under Hermione's pillow and she reached over to tuck it in, but Ron suddenly grabbed it.

"It's just a get well card," Hermione said quickly.

Before Ron could open the card, Bryt snatched it out of his hand and handed it back to Hermione.

"You don' need to go nosin' around in her stuff," she said.

"Why're you sleeping with a card under your _pillow_?" Ron asked.

Hermione's face went pink, but she didn't get a chance to answer because Madam Pomfrey had just shown up to give Hermione another dose of medicine. Bryt, Harry, and Ron stood up to leave then, deciding to head for the Gryffindor common room to do Potions homework.

"Bryt," Ron started suddenly, "Just how many rat tails are you supposed to add to a Hair-Raising Potion?"

Bryt was about to answer when she heard Filch's angry voice a floor above them. The three friends quickly went up the stairway, hiding in the shadows.

"You don't think someone else's been attacked?" Ron whispered.

Bryt swallowed, not wanting to think about that, focusing on hearing Filch nearby.

"—_even more work for me! Mopping all night, like I haven't got enough to do! No, this is the final straw, I'm going to Dumbledore_—"

Filch's yelling faded out as they heard a door slam in the distance. Bryt slowly leaned around the corner and noticed the corridor was now empty, aside from Filch's stool by the writing that had appeared on the wall on Halloween. The three friends headed into the corridor, soon seeing why Filch had gotten angry.

"Myrtle's had a big tantrum this time," Bryt said, looking around at the water flooding the corridor.

Bryt moved forward, pulling up her robes to keep them out of the water as she went into Myrtle's bathroom with Ron and Harry. Moaning Myrtle's wailing could be heard easily and Bryt cringed against the noise as she looked around at the soaked bathroom. She had to squint slightly because the candles had been extinguished due to the flooding.

"What's up, Myrtle?" Harry asked, looking around.

"Who's that?" Myrtle called out through tears, "Come to throw something else at me?"

"Why would we throw somethin' at you?" Bryt asked, moving cautiously to the last stall with her friends.

Myrtle suddenly flew out of the toilet, splashing more water.

"Don't ask me!" she shouted, "Here I am, minding my own business, and someone thinks it's funny to throw a book at me..."

"But it can't hurt you if someone throws something at you," Harry said and Bryt's eyes widened as she motioned for Harry to stop, but he didn't see, "I mean, it'd just go right through you, wouldn't it?"

Bryt sighed and covered her ears as Myrtle looked like she was about to, if it were possible, start crying even louder.

"Let's all throw books at Myrtle because _she_ can't feel it!" the ghost shrieked and Bryt winced, her hands over her ears doing little good, "Ten points if you get it through her stomach! Fifty points if it goes through her head! Well, ha, ha, ha! What a lovely game, I _don't_ think!"

Bryt waited until she was sure Myrtle was done screaming before she uncovered her ears.

"Who threw it at you, anyway?" Harry asked.

"_I_ don't know...I was just sitting in the U-bend, thinking about death, and it fell right through the top of my head," Myrtle was glaring at them, then she pointed under a sink, "It's over there, it got washed out..."

Bryt went over, kneeling down. In the water was a small, thin book. Bryt reached down to pick it up, bur Ron grabbed her arm.

"Ron, let go," Bryt said.

"That book could be dangerous," Ron said.

"_Dangerous_?" Harry laughed, "Come off it, how could it be dangerous?"

"You'd be surprised," Ron said, "Some of the books the Ministry's confiscated—Dad's tole me—there was one that burned your eyes out. And everyone who read _Sonnets of a Sorcerer_ spoke in limericks for the rest of their lives. And some old witch in Bath had a book that you could _never stop reading_! You just had to wander around with your nose in it, trying to do everything one-handed. And—"

"We got it," Bryt cut in, "But we can't find anythin' out unless we pick it up."

Bryt pulled her arm from Ron's grasp and picked up the book, standing up. Harry and Ron crowded to either side of her.

"Some type of diary," Bryt said, seeing the date on the front said it was from fifty years ago, "An old one at that."

Bryt flipped open the diary, but the pages were blank except for the name "T. M. Riddle" on the first page.

"That name looks familiar," Bryt said.

"It should," Ron said, "He got an award for special services to the school fifty years ago. It's the one I burped slugs all over and had to clean for an hour."

Harry took the diary from Bryt's hands, flipping through the stuck-together pages.

"He never wrote in it," Harry said.

"Wonder why someone flushed it," Bryt said, wrinkling her nose slightly. After all, if the thing was blank, why not just throw it in the bottom of a trunk or in the trash? Or even just give it to someone else? Flushing a blank book down the toilet seemed like one of the stupidest things in the world to Bryt, and after spending eleven years with Sofí García, Bryt had seen, and done, a lot of stupid things.

Harry shrugged, turning the diary over and looking at the back.

"He must've been Muggleborn to have bought a diary from Vauxhall Road."

"Well, it's not much use to you," Ron said, then whispering, "Fifty points if you can get it through Myrtle's nose."

Bryt hit Ron upside the head as Harry shoved the diary in his pocket, though Bryt had no idea why he'd want to keep it. The three left the bathroom, heading back to the common room to finally get to work on their homework.

**xxxxx**

February came quickly and Hermione was finally released from the hospital wing, completely back to normal. Like Harry, she had seemed interested in Riddle's diary. Bryt had sided with Ron with thinking there was nothing special about the book, which was why she was annoyed when Hermione wanted a look at it in the common room one afternoon.

"It might have hidden powers," Hermione had said, pulling the diary towards her.

"It's doin' a good job at hidin' them," Bryt said, not really paying much attention from where she was laying across the couch.

"Maybe it's shy," Ron joked, "I don't know why you don't chuck it, Harry."

"I wish I knew why someone _did_ chuck it," Harry sighed, "I wouldn't mind knowing how Riddle got an award for special services to Hogwarts, either."

"Could've been anything," Ron replied, "Maybe he got thirty OWLs or saved a teacher from the giant squid. Maybe he murdered Myrtle; that would have done everyone a favor..."

"Ronald!" Bryt snapped, then noticed Harry and Hermione exchanging a curious look.

"What?" Bryt and Ron asked together.

"Well," Hermione said slowly, "The Chamber of Secrets was opened fifty years ago, wasn't it? That's what Malfoy said."

"Yeah?" Bryt and Ron chorused.

"And _this diary_ is fifty years old," Hermione tapped the book as she spoke.

"Oh!" Bryt gasped, sitting up and swinging her legs off the couch, "You think Riddle's award for special services was because he caught who had opened the Chamber last time!"

"How did you get that?" Ron asked.

"Because he got the award fifty years ago, when the person was expelled, Ron," Bryt replied.

"His diary would probably tell us everything," Hermione said, "Where the Chamber is, and how to open it, and what sort of creature lives in it—the person who's behind the attacks this time wouldn't want that lying around, would they?"

"There is a bit of a problem with that," Bryt said as her short excitement wore off and she decided to stretch back out across the couch, "Diary's empty."

"It might be invisible ink!" Hermione whispered, pulling out her wand, tapping the diary, "_Aparecium_!"

Not surprising to Bryt, nothing happened. Hermione seemed more determined, though, and she pulled out a bright red eraser.

"It's a Revealer, I got it in Diagon Alley," Hermione said.

"Why'd you want one?" Bryt asked curiously, but Hermione ignored her and rubbed the eraser over 'January First'. Not surprising again, nothing happened.

"I'm telling you, there's nothing to find in there," Ron said, "Riddle just got a diary for Christmas and couldn't be bothered filling it in."

Bryt nodded in agreement, then closed her eyes and listened to the others talk. With how determined Harry was about Riddle's diary, it made her glad that the only one of her friends that knew _she_ kept a diary was Hermione. And she was a good enough friend to respect Bryt's privacy. Not that there was anything in Bryt's diary that Hermione didn't already know. Bryt told the bushy-haired girl everything.

Over the next few days, Harry didn't seem to want to give up about finding out anything he could about Riddle and Bryt was beginning to find it more and more annoying. So that was why Bryt had her arms crossed over her chest, annoyed, standing in the trophy room that Harry had insisted on going to. Ron seemed to be with Bryt in wanting to just drop everything about Riddle, but Hermione seemed slightly interested.

Bryt hovered behind her friends as Harry leaned over a gold shield in one corner.

"There's nothing saying why he got it," Harry said.

"Good thing, too," Ron mumbled, "Or else I'd still be polishing it."

Harry started looking around the trophy room and found Riddle had a Medal for Magical Merit, and on a list of Head Boys.

"He sounds like Percy," Ron said, making a face, "Prefect, Head Boy...Probably top of every class—"

"You say that like it's a bad thing," Hermione huffed.

"Ron, you need to learn to keep your mouth shut," Bryt said, stretching slightly, "Anyway, I'm headin' back to the common room to enjoy the rest of my break. I'm tired of hearin' about Riddle all the time. You bring him up again, Harry, and I might hit yah."

Along with getting Riddle's diary out of her mind, Bryt was also starting to think less and less of the attacks, and the other students were beginning to relax more around the school. It had been so long since an attack that people were feeling more hopeful now. Not to mention the Mandrakes were nearly mature, which meant it wouldn't be long before the Petrified would be back to normal.

Bryt woke up a little later than usual on February fourteenth. She would have completely slept in if Hermione hadn't shook her awake.

"Come on, Bryt, get up," Hermione said.

Bryt yawned, getting up and dressing, still half-asleep. She brushed through her hair and pulled it back quickly before grabbing her bag and heading downstairs for breakfast with Ron (he said Harry was still asleep). Bryt and Hermione both burst into a fit of giggles at the sight of the Great Hall that day. Large pink flowers covered the walls and heart-shaped confetti was falling from the ceiling.

"Someone went all out this year," Bryt giggled, hurrying towards the Gryffindor table with Hermione. Ron sat across from them, looking almost horrified over the decorations.

Harry came in sometime later, seeming confused about his surroundings as he sat next to Ron.

"What's going on?" he asked and Ron simply pointed to the teachers' table.

Bryt and Hermione were trying to settle down their giggling as Lockhart, who was dressed in pink, was waving for silence. The teachers along the table looked less than pleased about what was going on.

"Happy Valentine's Day!" Lockhart called, "And may I thank the forty-six people who have so far sent me cards! Yes, I have taken the liberty of arranging this little surprise for you all—and it doesn't end here!"

Lockhart clapped his hands and the doors to the entrance hall opened. A dozen dwarfs wearing golden wings came in, each carrying a harp.

"My friendly, card-carrying cupids!" Lockhart grinned, "They will be roving around the school today delivering your valentines! And the fun doesn't stop here! I'm sure my colleagues will want to enter the spirit of the occasion! Why not ask Professor Snape to show you how to whip up a Love Potion! And while you're at it, Professor Flitwick knows more about Entrancing Enchantments than any wizard I've ever met, the sly dog!"

"I dare you to ask Snape to show us a Love Potion," Bryt giggled, noticing the look on Snape's face.

"Please, don't tell me you two were two of the forty-six," Ron said as the quartet headed for their first class.

"And what if I was?" Bryt asked, her face reddening as Hermione preoccupied herself with getting her schedule out of her bag.

It was hard to concentrate in any class because the dwarfs kept coming in to deliver valentines to various students. Teachers seemed to be getting more and more annoyed at the interruptions, but Bryt thought the drawfs were amusing. As the friends were on their way to Charms and were just passing a group of first years when a voice called from behind.

"Oy, you! 'Arry Potter!" the dwarf shouted, pushing through the crowd.

Harry went red and tried to speed up, but the dwarf got to him before he could get away.

"I've got a musical message to deliver to 'Arry Potter in person," the dwarf said, running his fingers along the strings of his harp.

_'A musical message?'_ Bryt started giggling at the thought. Who would have sent Harry that?

"_Not here_," Bryt heard Harry hiss as he tried to pull away from the dwarf.

"Stay _still_!" the dwarf grabbed onto Harry's school bag.

"Let me go!" Harry yanked on his bag and it suddenly ripped.

All of Harry's things fell to the floor, an ink bottle smashing, sending scarlet ink over all of Harry's books, parchment, and quills. Bryt bent down to help Harry get everything up since he seemed in a hurry to get out as fast as he could.

"What's going on here?" Malfoy's voice came and Harry jerked a book out of Bryt's hands, shoving it into his bag, suddenly working faster to get his things together.

"What's all this commotion?" Percy had shown up as well.

Bryt was knocked backwards as Harry tried to run off, but the dwarf suddenly tackled Harry from behind and sat on Harry's legs. Bryt slowly got to her feet as the dwarf cleared his throat.

"Right. Here is your singing valentine:

_His eyes are as green as a fresh pickled toad,  
His hair is as dark as a blackboard,  
I wish he was mine, he's really divine,  
The hero who conquered the Dark Lord._"

Bryt couldn't help herself. She started laughing, and so did everyone else. Harry gave a weak laugh as he got to his feet and Percy started towards the crowd.

"Off you go, off you go, the bell rang five minutes ago, off to class, now," Percy was trying to get the crowd moving, "_And_ you, Malfoy—"

Bryt looked over and noticed Malfoy had just picked up a book Harry had missed. Riddle's diary.

"Give that back," Harry said.

"Wonder what Potter's written in this?" Malfoy asked.

At least Malfoy just thought it was Harry's diary. Bryt looked over to Harry, who was glaring at Malfoy.

"Hand it over, Malfoy," Percy spoke up.

"When I've had a look," Malfoy smirked, waving the diary.

"As a school prefect—" Percy started, but Harry had suddenly pulled out his wand.

"_Expelliarmus_!" Harry shouted and the diary suddenly flew out of Malfoy's hand. Ron was grinning as he reached up and caught it. Bryt cheered, laughing at Malfoy's expression.

"Harry!" Percy said, "No magic in the corridors. I'll have to report this, you know!"

Bryt glared at Percy as Ron handed Harry back Riddle's diary. Malfoy wasn't too happy over what had happened, either. He suddenly turned to Ginny, who Bryt hadn't even noticed was there until now, as she was going into a classroom.

"I don't think Potter liked your valentine much!" he shouted.

Ginny took off into the classroom and Ron yanked out his wand, but Harry and Bryt both pulled him away. The last thing they needed was Ron's wand backfiring in the middle of a hallway, though Bryt would have loved to punch Malfoy herself at the moment. Together, Harry and Bryt managed to pull Ron away and they started for their next class with Hermione right behind.


	15. A Long Day

Bryt was sitting in the common room the next morning, writing a letter to her friends in Charleston while Hermione was answering one of Julio's letters. Bryt was just dipping her quill into her ink when Harry and Ron came down, sitting with them.

"Hagrid opened the Chamber last time," Harry whispered.

Bryt's quill froze over her parchment, drops of ink falling on her letter as she stared at Harry in shock.

"Hagrid?" she echoed when she finally found her voice, "Are you insane? What makes you think _Hagrid_ opened the Chamber of Secrets?"

"Riddle's diary," Harry explained, "I figured out how to make it work, he had some enchantment on it. I could actually see into his memory, he caught Hagrid with the creature. It was Hagrid."

Bryt stared at Harry with an open mouth, clutching her quill. It took a moment to pull from her thoughts and she looked down to see a large fiery orange ink spot in the middle of one of her sentences. Sighing, she put down her quill and pulled out her wand to try and fix it, trying to make sense of what Harry was saying.

"Riddle _might_ have got the wrong person," Hermione said, "Maybe it was some other monster that was attacking people..."

"How many monsters d'you think this place can hold?" Ron asked.

"But Hagrid?" Bryt refused to believe it, "Hagrid would never do somethin' to hurt anyone."

"We always knew Hagrid had been expelled, Bryt," Harry said, seeming as disappointed about the news as Bryt was, "And the attacks must've stopped after Hagrid was kicked out. Otherwise, Riddle wouldn't have got his award."

"Riddle _does_ sound like Percy," Ron said, "Who asked him to squeal on Hagrid, anyway?"

"But the monster had _killed_ someone, Ron," Hermione said.

"You're the one that said it could have been a different monster," Bryt spoke up, the ink blot now gone from her letter, but she didn't go back to writing it.

"Riddle was going to go back to some Muggle orphanage if they closed Hogwarts," Harry spoke up again, "I don't blame him for wanting to stay here..."

"You met Hagrid down Knockturn Alley, didn't you, Harry?" Hermione asked.

"He was buying a Flesh-Eating Slug Repellent," Harry answered quickly.

A silence fell over the four and Bryt stared down at her unfinished letter.

"Do you think we should go _ask_ Hagrid about it all?" Hermione finally spoke up.

"That'd be a cheerful visit," Ron replied, "'Hello, Hagrid. Tell us, have you been setting anything mad and hairy loose in the castle lately?'"

"Let's wait," Bryt said, "The attacks seemed to have stopped, after all. But if they happen again, we should go talk to him."

The others agreed and the conversation was left alone. Bryt and Hermione turned back to their letters.

"Julio?" Harry had obviously looked at Hermione's letter, "Why are you writing to Bryt's friend?"

"Because he's my friend too," Hermione said shortly, "We've been pen pals since early last year."

"And you didn't bother to tell us?" Ron smirked.

"What's it t'you who Hermione writes?" Bryt looked up at Ron with a stern look.

Apparently, neither of the boys wanted to risk Bryt hitting them because neither gave a reply to her question. Bryt went back to her letter, but not before grinning at the grateful look Hermione had given her.

Luckily, it seemed as if they wouldn't have to go talk to Hagrid. It had been almost four months since Justin and Nearly Headless Nick had been attacked and everyone was beginning to think that it was over. And the Mandrakes were almost mature, it was only a matter of time before the Petrified would be revived.

As the Easter Holidays approached, second years were given something to distract them. They were given a list of classes to choose from for their third year. Hermione found it a very serious matter.

"It could affect our whole future," she said as they went over the lists, Hermione checking everything.

"I just want to give up Potions," Harry said.

"We can't," Ron grumbled, "We keep all our old subjects, or I'd've ditched Defense Against the Dark Arts."

"But that's very important!" Hermione exclaimed.

"Not the way Lockhart teaches it. I haven't learned anything except not to set pixies loose."

Bryt glared and kicked at Ron under the table, but accidentally hitting Harry.

"Sorry," Bryt grinned apologetically when Harry glared. She distracted herself by looking down at her own schedule.

"I don' know what to pick besides Care of Magical Creatures, though," she said. So far, it was the only class she marked, which she had the second she saw the title, "I mean, I won' take Ancient Runes. I'm not good with translatin' stuff—"

"Bryt, you speak Spanish."

"Not fluently," Bryt glared at Harry before looking back at her schedule, "And only 'cause Mr. García taught me when I was really little. Besides, knowin' a second language doesn' mean I'll be good at another, if Ancient Ruins is even a language. Hm...Not Arithmancy, either. That'll probably be worse than Transfiguration...No reason for Muggle Studies...Maybe Divination? Though I've never really believed in all that fortune-tellin' superstitious stuff."

Bryt glanced up and noticed Harry and Ron staring at her.

"What?"

"You wear a lucky bracelet and you're saying you're not superstitious?" Ron asked.

"Wearin' a lucky bracelet doesn' make me superstitious, just cautious," Bryt glared.

In the end, Bryt finally decided to choose the class that she thought she'd hate the least, which was Divination, the same second class as Harry and Ron.

Hermione was already getting a head start on the classes. One day while Bryt had her photo album on her lap, going through the photos she had collected so far that year, Hermione had her face hidden behind a book called _Ancient Ruins Made Easy_.

Bryt was just anchoring a picture of her and Hermione when Harry and Ron came over, sitting down.

"Someone trashed our dormitory," Harry whispered, "My stuff was all over the place. They took Riddle's diary."

Bryt's eyes widened as she stared at Harry. Hermione was just as shocked.

"But—only a Gryffindor could have stolen—nobody else knows our password—"

"Exactly," Harry replied.

"Why would someone want Riddle's diary?" Bryt asked, "They had to be lookin' specifically for it if nothing else was taken?"

"The diary's the only thing missing," Harry conformed.

"Harry, you have to report this," Hermione said.

"No," Harry shook his head, "If I go to a teacher, I'm going to have to explain everything about the diary. What if that teacher already knows about how Hagrid got expelled?"

"You're right," Bryt nodded, "Better to keep it quiet."

Bryt didn't really think too much on the theft, letting her mind get distracted with the fact that the Quidditch match against Hufflepuff was the next day. She had woken up early to find the day was a nice, clear day. Bryt was excited, talking about the match with Ron during breakfast before heading out with him, Hermione, and Harry for the common room for Harry to get his broom.

They had just reached the stairs when Harry gave a shout. Bryt yelped as she jumped, nearly tripping backwards down the two steps she had just climbed.

"What was _that_ for?" Bryt demanded, her heart pounding as she tightened her grip on the railing she had grabbed for support.

"The voice!" Harry looked over his shoulder to the entrance hall, "I just heard it again—didn't you?"

Bryt and Ron shook their heads, but Hermione slapped her hand to her forehead as if something just came to her.

"Harry—I think I've just understood something!" Hermione said, "I've got to go to the library!"

Hermione took off up the stairs before anyone could question her.

"_What_ does she understand?" Harry asked, looking around the room. Bryt guessed he was trying to hear the voice again.

"Loads more than I do," Ron shook his head.

"Why'd she just take off to the library like she was on fire?" Bryt asked.

"Because that's what Hermione does," Ron shrugged, "When in doubt, go to the library."

"You'd better get goin', Harry," Bryt said, "Almost eleven now."

Harry nodded and took off up the stairs. Bryt turned to Ron and the two decided to head on down to the Quidditch pitch where they quickly found seats for the match. Both had quickly forgotten about Harry hearing the voice and were anxious for the match to begin.

"Where's Hermione?" Bryt asked, looking around after the Hufflepuff team came out, "She's goin' to miss the match."

"She's probably forgotten all about it," Ron said, "You know how she is when she's studying something."

Bryt nodded, turning back to the field to see the Gryffindor team had come out. Bryt joined in the cheering as Madam Hooch released the balls for the game. The teams were just mounting their brooms when McGonagall suddenly came rushing across the field with a megaphone.

"This match has been canceled," McGonagall called and there was an uproar of booing, Bryt among them. Canceling the Quidditch match was not something Bryt wanted to hear.

"All students are to make their way back to the House common rooms, where their Head of Houses will give them further information," McGonagall continued, "As quickly as you can, please!"

Bryt looked over at Ron with wide eyes. It was clear the same thing was on both of their minds and they both rushed down through the crowd, running towards where McGonagall was heading across the grounds with Harry.

"There you two are," McGonagall said, seeing them, "Yes, perhaps you'd better come, too, Weasley, Miss Watkins..."

Bryt followed along, trying to ignore the worried voices and the grumbling of students around them. Strangely, the three friends weren't taken to an office, but to the hospital wing.

"This will be a bit of a shock," McGonagall said and Bryt suddenly felt her insides churning, already knowing what McGonagall was about to show them, "There has been another attack...another _double_ attack."

_'Hermione, oh no...Oh God...'_ Bryt thought, _'She was still in the castle, oh no...'_

Bryt had to force herself to move, following Harry and Ron into the hospital wing. Madam Pomfrey was bent over a fifth-year girl with long, curly hair. Bryt looked to the bed beside her and her fear was confirmed. Hermione lay on the bed, her eyes open wide.

"_Hermione_!" Ron groaned.

McGonagall said something, but Bryt didn't hear. She was staring at Hermione, feeling as if she might faint. Her entire body was numb and she felt like she was having trouble just breathing. All she could do was stare at Hermione's frightened expression that was frozen on her friend's face.

Bryt felt something tugging on her arms and she finally managed to turn from Hermione to see her friends staring at her with worried expressions. Bryt glanced away from them before she followed her friends and Head of House back to the Gryffindor common room. Bryt was in a bit of a daze, unable to get the image of Hermione out of her head. She stayed motionless between Ron and Harry as McGonagall pulled out a roll of parchment, beginning to read from it, though it sounded faint to Bryt, like she was underwater and someone was talking above the surface.

"All students will return to their House common rooms by six o'clock in the evening. No student is to leave the dormitories after that time. You will be escorted to each lesson by a teacher. No student is to use the bathroom unaccompanied by a teacher. All further Quidditch training and matches are to be postponed. There will be no more evening activities," McGonagall rolled up the parchment, looking over the students. Her voice was strangely strained, "I need hardly add that I have rarely been so distressed. It is likely that the school will be closed unless the culprit behind these attacks is caught. I would urge anyone who thinks they might know anything about them to come forward."

The second McGonagall left the common room, there was an uproar of conversations. Bryt wondered over to the fire, sinking into a chair before leaning forward, wrapping her hands around the back of her neck as she propped her elbows on her knees. She scrunched up her face into an annoyed expression, glaring at the ground. It was often how she dealt with being upset, it kept her from crying. Fighting tears was just something that started instinctively with Bryt after she had broken down crying in a hospital after her grandparents' death. Most of the time now, Bryt didn't realize she was doing it.

"Bryt?"

Bryt glanced up and noticed Ron and Harry had sat with her, both giving her a concerned look.

"Are you okay?" Ron asked.

Bryt opened her mouth to lie and say she was fine, but it just wouldn't come. Instead, she closed her mouth again and swallowed.

"It's just..." Bryt whispered, "Hermione...No offense to you two, you're both great friends, but..."

"It's Hermione," Harry said.

"Yeah," Bryt whispered, giving a small nod. She really didn't know how to explain it to Harry and Ron. Sure, she was really close to to the boys, just as close as she had been with Sofí and Julio back in the states, but she had been even closer to Hermione. It was possibly due to the fact that they were both girls, or the fact they shared a room for nine months out of the year, or maybe a mixture of both. Even though they had only known each other for a year and a half, Bryt considered Hermione the sister she never had, her closest friend.

Luckily, Harry and Ron didn't press the matter. Maybe they understood, Bryt didn't really know. She bit her lip, looking down again and the three lapsed into silence. Bryt was trying anything to keep from thinking about Hermione in the hospital wing, instead focusing on any way to figure out what was going on at their school.

"We have to talk to Hagrid," Harry's voice made Bryt jump and she turned to stare at him, "I can't believe it's him this time, but if he set the monster loose last time, he'll know how to get inside the Chamber of Secrets, and that's a start."

"But McGonagall said we've got to stay in our tower unless we're in class—" Ron started, but Harry cut in.

"I think it's time to get my dad's old cloak out again."

Bryt nodded, remembering the Invisibility Cloak that Harry had gotten for Christmas the year before with a note saying it had belonged to his father. With the plan made, Harry and Ron pretended to go up to bed with the rest of their roommates and Bryt stayed by the fire in the common room. Whenever anyone asked, she said she was writing a letter, which she was. She had a piece of parchment out, writing to Sofí and Julio and telling them what was happening at the school, and what had happened to Hermione. Whenever she tried to write it, though, her hand would freeze over the parchment. It took nearly two hours before she could finally finish the letter.

Bryt had just finished folding the letter and tucking it away to send off in the morning when Harry and Ron came down into the common room. She huddled up under the cloak with her friends and they started out of the common room.

It was tense getting out of the castle. Nearly every corridor they went down had either teachers or prefects patrolling them. Once, Ron stumped his toe and Bryt had to cover his mouth as he called out, but luckily, Snape, who was in the hall with them, had sneezed at the exact same time. Bryt held her breath almost the entire time in the castle and had sighed in relief when they had finally made it through the oak front doors.

The three raced towards Hagrid's house and yanked off the cloak as Harry knocked on the door. Bryt jumped when the door flung open and she saw Hagrid there, aiming a crossbow at them. Fang was barking from inside the cabin.

"Oh," Hagrid lowered his weapon when he noticed the three friends, "What're you three doin' here?"

"What's that for?" Harry pointed to the crossbow as Hagrid ushered the three inside.

"Nothin'—nothin'—" Hagrid said, "I've bin expectin'—doesn' matter—Sit down—I'll make tea—"

Hagrid seemed nervous as he attempted to make tea. He accidentally dumped water on the fire and ended up smashing his teapot.

"You okay, Hagrid?" Bryt asked.

"Did you hear about Hermione?" Harry added.

"Oh, I heard, all righ'," Hagrid sounded upset and he kept looking out his windows as he handed the three mugs of hot water as he forgot to add tea bags.

Hagrid had just cutting a slice of fruitcake when a knock came to the door. Bryt, panicking, dove under the cloak with Harry and Ron and the three backed into a corner, Bryt squeezed so tightly between her two friends that she couldn't move.

Hagrid grabbed his crossbow and checked to make sure the three friends were invisible before opening the door.

"Good evening, Hagrid," Dumbledore greeted, entering with a second man.

Bryt's eyes widened at his appearance as the man ran a hand through his gray hair. He was wearing a cloak over a pinstriped suit with a red tie and he was carrying a lime-green bowler hat.

"That's Dad's boss!" Ron whispered, "Cornelius Fudge, the Minister of Magic!"

"What's he _wearin'_?" Bryt whispered.

"Shh," Harry hissed.

"Bad business, Hagrid," Fudge said as Hagrid sunk into a chair, looking even more nervous than before, "Very bad business. Had to come. Four attacks on Muggleborns. Things've gone far enough. Ministry's got to act."

"I never," Hagrid said, looking to Dumbledore, "you know I never, Professor Dumbledore, sir—"

"I want it understood, Cornelius," Dumbledore spoke up, frowning at Fudge, "That Hagrid has my full confidence."

"Look, Albus. Hagrid's record's against him. Ministry's got to do something—the school governors have been in touch—"

"Yet again, Cornelius, I tell you that taking Hagrid away will not help in the slightest."

"Look at it from my point of view," Fudge said, his hands running around the brim of his bowler, "I'm under a lot of pressure. Got to be seen to be doing something. If it turns out it wasn't Hagrid, he'll be back and no more said. But I've got to take him. Got to. Wouldn't be doing my duty—"

"Take me?" Hagrid echoed, "Take me where?"

"For a short stretch only," Fudge seemed to be avoiding looking at Hagrid, "Not a punishment, Hagrid, more a precaution. If someone else is caught, you'll be let out with a full apology—"

"Not Azkaban?" Hagrid's voice was weak.

"Azkaban?" Bryt echoed in a whisper, only to have Ron's hand clamp over her mouth. Bryt glared at him from the corner of her eye.

Luckily, when Bryt had spoken up, there had been a knock at the door so there was no chance she would have been heard anyway. Still, Ron didn't take his hand from Bryt's mouth.

Dumbledore answered the door and Harry gave a light gasp beside Bryt as they saw Lucius Malfoy step inside, looking satisfied. Bryt didn't like his expression.

"Already here, Fudge," Mr. Malfoy grinned, "Good, good..."

"What're you doin' here?" Hagrid snapped, "Get outta my house!"

"My dear man, please believe me, I have no pleasure at all in being inside your—er—do you call this a house?" Malfoy looked around in disgust and Bryt glared at him, "I simply called at the school and was told that the headmaster was here."

"And what exactly did you want with me, Lucius?" Dumbledore asked politely.

"_Dreadful_ timing, Dumbledore," Mr. Malfoy said in an almost sarcastic tone, holding up a roll of parchment, "But the governors feel it's time for you to step aside. This is an Order of Suspension—you'll find all twelve signatures on it. I'm afraid we fell you're losing your touch. How many attacks have there been now? Two more this afternoon, wasn't it? At this rate, there'll be no Muggleborns left at Hogwarts, and we all know what an _awful_ loss that would be to the school."

_'Like you'd care,'_ Bryt thought bitterly, glaring at Mr. Malfoy. She tried to shift slightly between Harry and Ron, but she couldn't move and Ron still refused to uncover her mouth.

"Oh, now, see here, Lucius," Fudge said, not seeming to like Mr. Malfoy's news, "Dumbledore suspended—no, no—last thing we want just now—"

"The appointment—or suspension—of the headmaster is a matter for the governors, Fudge," Mr. Malfoy replied, "And as Dumbledore has failed to stop these attacks—"

"See here, Malfoy," Fudge cut in, "If _Dumbledore_ can't stop them...I mean to say, who _can_?"

"That remains to be seen," Mr. Malfoy got a smile on his face that Bryt didn't like one bit, "But as all twelve of us have voted—"

"An' how many did yeh have ter threaten an' blackmail before they agreed, Malfoy, eh?" Hagrid cut in, jumping to his feet.

"Dear, dear," Mr. Malfoy said calmly, "You know, that temper of yours will lead you into trouble one of these days, Hagrid. I would advise you not to shout at the Azkaban guards like that. They wouldn't like it at all."

_'Azkaban must be a prison...'_ Bryt thought with dread. They were taking Hagrid to jail...

"Yeh can' take Dumbledore!" Hagrid was yelling now, "Take him away, an' the Muggleborns won' stand a chance! There'll be a killin' next!"

"Calm yourself, Hagrid," Dumbledore said, looking over at Mr. Malfoy, "If the governors want me removal, Lucius, I shall of course step aside—"

"But—" Fudge started.

"_No_!" Hagrid growled at the same time.

"However," Dumbledore continued, still looking at Mr. Malfoy as if Fudge and Hagrid hadn't spoken, "You will find that I will only _truly_ have left this school when none here are loyal to me. You will also find that help will always be given at Hogwarts to those who ask for it."

Bryt felt her heart start pounding as Dumbledore seemed to look straight at her and her friends for barely a second.

"Admirable sentiments," Mr. Malfoy bowed, "We shall all miss your—er—highly individual way of running things, Albus, and only hope that your successor will manage to prevent any—ah—_killins_."

Mr. Malfoy opened the door and bowed Dumbledore out. Fudge was still running his hands around the edge of his bowler hat and waited for Hagrid to lead the way out, but the giant man hesitated and took a deep breath.

"If anyone wanted ter find out some _stuff_," Hagrid started, "All they'd have ter do would be ter follow the _spiders_. That'd lead 'em right! That's all I'm sayin'."

Fudge gave Hagrid a weird look, and Bryt couldn't blame him for that.

"All right, I'm comin'," Hagrid said, pulling on his overcoat and starting to follow Fudge, but stopped again, "An' someone'll need ter feed Fang while I'm away."

As soon as the door shut and Harry pulled off the cloak, Bryt pulled away from Ron.

"Dumbledore's gone," Ron whispered, "They might as well close the school tonight. There'll be an attack a day with him gone."

Bryt bit her lower lip and looked over at Fang, who was scratching at the cabin door. Now that she really thought about it, she had to agree with Ron. Hermione was Petrified, Hagrid was being taken to prison, and Dumbledore was gone...Bryt couldn't imagine things getting any worse, but she knew they probably would.


	16. Following the Spiders

The usual excitement that came with summer was lost to worry at Hogwarts. With both Dumbledore and Hagrid gone, the castle didn't seem normal as students always hunched together as tightly as they could when going from class to class.

Bryt had wanted desperately to visit Hermione, despite the fact that Hermione wouldn't be able to respond to anything, but Madam Pomfrey was refusing to let anyone near the hospital wing in fear that the attacker would return to go after his previous victims.

It was becoming incredibly hard, almost impossible, to follow up on Hagrid's clue 'follow the spiders'. Not only was there no way the three friends could pull away from the crowds to look for spiders, but there were no spiders _to_ follow. No matter how much Bryt, Harry, and Ron (though reluctantly) looked, they could never find any spiders in the castle.

Bryt's already irritated mood from missing Hermione was being pushed to it's limits by Malfoy, who seemed to be enjoying the terror-filled mood at Hogwarts. She found out what had him so happy during one Potions class.

"I always thought Father might be the one who got rid of Dumbledore," Malfoy was talking to Crabbe and Goyle, making no effort to keep his voice down, "I told you he thinks Dumbledore's the worst headmaster the school's ever had. Maybe we'll get a decent headmaster now. Someone who won't _want_ the Chamber of Secrets closed. McGonagall won't last long, she's only filling in..."

Bryt clutched her hands into fists, glaring at Malfoy before focusing back on her potion as Snape went by.

"I'm gonna slug him, I swear I'm gonna slug him," Bryt mumbled, glaring at Malfoy again.

"Sir," Malfoy continued, now talking to Snape, "Sir, why don't _you_ apply for the headmaster's job?"

"Now, now, Malfoy," Snape said with a slight smirk, "Professor Dumbledore has only been suspended by the governors. I daresay he'll be back with us soon enough."

"Yeah, right," Malfoy smirked this time, "I expect you'd have Father's vote, sir, if you wanted to apply for the job—_I'll_ tell Father you're the best teacher here, sir—"

Bryt glared again, then almost laughed as she noticed Seamus pretending to vomit in his cauldron. Luckily, Snape didn't notice it.

"I'm quite surprised the Mudbloods haven't all packed their bags by now," Malfoy continued and she turned to see he was glancing her way now, "Bet you five Galleons the next one dies. Maybe it'll be Watkins—"

Bryt smirked a little. "Keep dreamin', Malfoy," she said sweetly as the bell rang.

It wasn't the response that Malfoy was expecting as he looked irritated. Bryt grinned again and turned to see Ron fumbling to get his things together. He started to move forward, but Harry and Dean suddenly grabbed his arms as they headed from the room.

"Let me at him," Ron growled, "I don't care, I don't need my wand, I'm going to kill him with my bare hands—"

"Hurry up, I've got to take you all to Herbology," Snape snapped, leading the class from the dungeon. Harry and Dean were still keeping a hold of Ron in the back of the group with Bryt walking a little in front of them.

"How could you just take it like that, Bryt?" Dean asked when they finally let go of Ron as they crossed the Hogwarts grounds, "How could you just take what Malfoy said?"

"Because I don' care that much what people say about me, actually," Bryt said, shrugging, "Years of bein' around friends who always teased me, even though _they_ were always jokin'."

By now, they had reached the greenhouse and Harry, Ron, and Bryt went to their usual tray, though it felt strange without Hermione. Bryt found herself staring at the empty spot, then stiffened when Ernie from Hufflepuff came over. Their last conversation in the library was coming back now.

"I just want to say, Harry," Ernie started after taking a deep breath, "That I'm sorry I ever suspected you. I know you'd never attack Hermione Granger, or Bryt, no matter what I said then. I apologize for all that stuff I said, to both of you." Ernie had looked over at Bryt now. "We're all in the same boat now, and, well—"

Ernie held out his hand and Harry shook it. Bryt just grinned and said he was forgiven.

"That Draco Malfoy character," Ernie said while they began their classwork, "He seems very pleased about all this, doesn't he? D'you know, I think _he_ might be Slytherin's heir."

"That's clever of you," Ron said sourly. Bryt elbowed him in the side.

"Do you think it's Malfoy, Harry?" Ernie asked, seeming not to notice Ron's tone.

"No," Harry said simply. Bryt noticed Ernie staring at Harry now.

"_Ouch!_" Ron cried and Bryt looked over to see him looking at Harry, "What're you—"

Harry was pointing outside the greenhouse and Bryt and Ron followed his gaze. Bryt's eyes widened as she spotted a line of spiders moving across the grounds, as if they were in a hurry.

"Where're they goin'?" Bryt asked.

"Looks like the Forbidden Forest," Harry answered.

Ron made a strange noise and Bryt fought back a giggle, going back to her work.

When class ended, Sprout began leading the students towards the castle for Defense Against the Dark Arts. Bryt lagged behind with Ron and Harry so they could talk privately.

"We'll have to use the Invisibility Cloak again," Harry whispered, "We can take Fang with us. He's used to going into the forest with Hagrid, he might be some help."

"Right," Ron nodded, though he looked nervous, "Er—aren't there—aren't there supposed to be werewolves in the forest?"

By now, they had reached their class and the three friends sat together.

"We never ran into 'em last year," Bryt said, remembering the year before when she, Harry, Neville, Hermione, and Malfoy had to serve detention by looking for an injured unicorn, "Besides, the centaurs are sorta okay."

"And there's the unicorns," Harry added.

"Exactly, we'll be fine," Bryt tried to assure Ron as Lockhart cam into the classroom, seeming oddly joyful. After all, every other teacher was far from happy at the moment.

"Come now," Lockhart exclaimed as all the students gave their teacher a strange look, "Why all the long faces?"

Bryt stared at Lockhart in shock. After all that happened, he thought they shouldn't be worried?

"Don't you people realize the danger has passed?" Lockhart was beginning to speak slower now, as if talking with infants, "The culprit has been taken away—"

"Says who?" Dean interrupted.

"My dear young man, the Minister of Magic wouldn't have taken Hagrid if he hadn't been one hundred percent sure that he was guilty," Lockhart said simply.

"Oh, yes he would!" Ron said loudly.

"I flatter myself I know a _touch_ more about Hagrid's arrest than you do, Mr. Weasley," Lockhart replied with an oddly satisfied expression on his face.

Ron opened his mouth, but Bryt elbowed him in the side and Harry looked over at Ron.

"We weren't there, remember?" he whispered.

Bryt found herself staring at Lockhart in a different way now, becoming increasingly annoyed with the man she once respected as he carried on, hinting that he always thought Hagrid was no good. Bryt was beginning to understand why Ron and Harry disliked Lockhart so much and was beginning to wonder why she ever admired him in the first place. Bryt spent most of the class glaring at Lockhart, resisting the urge to throw something at him.

Bryt felt Harry nudge her and she looked over as he slid a piece of parchment in front of her and Ron. On it was one simple sentence: _Let's do it tonight._

Bryt nodded instantly, thinking about Hermione. Ron swallowed, but nodded as well.

Their plan kept Bryt's mind occupied for the rest of their classes and throughout dinner. After eating, Bryt, Harry, and Ron headed for the Gryffindor common room with several of their house mates and Bryt and Ron sat by the fire while Harry went to his room to get the Invisibility Cloak. When he came back down, he sat on the cloak and the three friends were soon joined by Fred, George, and Ginny. Fred and George started a game of Exploding Snap with Ron and Harry, so Ginny sat nearby to watch. Bryt, however, pulled out a book and started going through the list of creatures in it, once again trying to search for one with the power to Petrify people.

Sometime in the middle of the night, Fred, George, and Ginny finally decided to head up to bed, being the last to leave Bryt, Ron, and Harry alone in the common room. They waited until they could hear the dormitory doors closing overhead before crowding together under Harry's cloak and heading out of the common room.

Once again, Bryt held her breath through most of the journey through the castle as they dodged teachers and prefects. Once they were out on the grounds, Ron had spoken up so suddenly that it had startled Bryt.

"'Course," Ron had said, "We might get to the forest and find there's nothing to follow. Those spiders might not've been going there at all. I know it looked like they were moving in that sort of general direction, but..."

Bryt wished she could be as hopeful as Ron. After all, the last place she wanted to go was into the forest. Still, she doubted Ron was right, and that the spiders were heading for the forest.

The three were quiet again as they reached Hagrid's dark hut. Harry slowly opened the door and Fang began barking happily, obviously excited that someone was around. To keep him quiet, Harry immediately grabbed a piece of Hagrid's treacle fudge and fed it to the dog. Bryt pulled out her wand as Harry put the Invisibility Cloak on Hagrid's table.

"C'mon, Fang, we're going for a walk," Harry said, leading the dog from the hut. Bryt and Ron followed right behind, keeping close to their friend.

Harry pulled out his own wand and muttered "_Lumos_", lighting up the end of his wand. Bryt quickly followed suit, looking around for signs of spiders.

"Good thinking," Ron said, "I'd light mine, too, but you know—"

"Yeah," Bryt cut in, giggling weakly, "Y'might set somethin' on fire."

"Hey, over here," Harry whispered from nearby.

Bryt and Ron moved over, Bryt lifting her wand. She noticed a couple of spiders heading straight for the forest. Seemed hopeful wishing hadn't paid off for them.

Ron gave a heavy sigh, straightening himself up.

"Okay," he said, "I'm ready. Let's go."

Bryt and Harry nodded and the three headed slowly into the forest, Fang right along with them. Bryt kept her eyes on the spiders they were following, listening to the sounds of the forest around her. She, Harry, and Ron didn't dare say anything (which was very difficult for Bryt, who tended to ramble when she was on edge) as they walked further and further into the forest to the point that they couldn't see anything past the light of Harry and Bryt's wands.

The three suddenly stopped as the spiders began heading away from the forest's path and Bryt was suddenly much more uncomfortable about what they were doing. She had felt relatively safe on the path, after all, Hagrid had told them the year before that they would be fine as long as they kept to it. But now, the spiders that Hagrid had told them to follow was leaving the safe path, disappearing from view among the thick trees around them.

"What d'you reckon?" Harry pulled Bryt from her thoughts and she looked over, barely able to make out the figures of her friends near her.

"We've come this far," Ron said.

Bryt swallowed and nodded.

"Hagrid said 'follow the spiders'," she whispered, hoping she didn't sound as unnerved as she felt, "So it should be safe, right?"

With the decision made, they headed on through the thick trees with Fang, moving much slower now. Several times, Bryt had to be helped to her feet after she tripped over tree roots or fell when she tried to free her robe from bushes or low branches. It wasn't long before Bryt was covered in dirt and the ends of her robe full of rips.

Bryt suddenly jumped as Fang let out a loud bark. She clung onto whichever of her friend was closer, she wasn't sure who, and raised her wand to look around.

"What?" Ron's voice was right beside Bryt, she had clung onto him it seemed, and he seemed as panicked as Bryt was feeling.

"There's something moving over there," Harry said quietly, "Listen...sounds like something big..."

Bryt gulped, but strained her ears, still gripping Ron's arm with one hand as she used the other to hold her wand out to illuminate their path. Bryt realized Harry was right. Just out of sight was something moving, snapping branches loudly. Bryt tightened her grip on Ron as her heart began pounding and she suddenly felt unable to move.

"Oh no," Ron whispered next to her, seeming just as scared, "Oh no, oh no—"

"Shut up," Harry cut in, "It'll hear you."

"Hear _me_? It's already heard Fang!"

"Wh...What _is_ it?" Bryt's voice was barely above a whisper as she shakily lifted her wand higher, as if it would give off more light that way.

"Don't know," Harry replied as there was a suddenly a strange sound before everything went silent.

"It's stalkin' us," Bryt whispered, her heart pounding more, as the realization hit her, "It's waitin' to attack..."


	17. Hagrid's Friend

Several long minutes passed, but nothing happened. Bryt had finally let go of Ron and was looking around, starting to clam down. Maybe the sound had left was because whatever was making it had left and Bryt was being paranoid.

"D'you think it's gone?" Harry asked, seeming to think along the same lines as Bryt.

"Maybe..." Bryt replied.

A bright light suddenly came from one side and Bryt, Harry, and Ron all threw up their arms and narrowed their eyes against it. Fang let out a loud yelp, and then another and Bryt glanced over to see the dog had gotten tangled in some thorns.

"It's our car!" Ron suddenly exclaimed.

"What?" Bryt and Harry echoed, looking over at Ron.

"Come on!"

Bryt and Harry scrambled after Ron until they reached a clearing where, sure enough, an old blue Ford Anglia sat among the trees. Ron was making his way towards the car slowly and Bryt started to follow. The car itself was covered in mud and scratches, probably from being in the forest so long. Bryt grinned as she tucked her wand back in her robes and glanced back at Harry and Fang.

"It's been here all the time!" Ron said, "Look at it. The forest's turned it wild...And we thought it was going to attack us! I wondered where it had gone!"

Bryt laughed at Ron practically hugging the car, but her laughing cut off instantly as something caught her eye and she turned to see what looked like four giant spiders towering over them from the edge of the clearing.

_'Acromantulas...'_ Bryt realized, her heart starting to pound again. There weren't supposed to be any colonies in Scotland, yet here they were. Bryt felt a wave of dread. With acromantulas, things were not going to turn out good.

A strange click came, then something grabbed Bryt around the middle, lifting her from the ground. She let out a scream, then found herself staring down at the ground below her. Panicking, Bryt didn't dare try and break free, looking around to see Harry, Ron, and Fang, who was howling, had all been caught as well.

The acromantulas began carrying the four deeper into the forest and Bryt began shaking slightly, trying not to think about what would happen when the giant spiders reached their destination. She concentrated on trying to see around her, though it was difficult until they reached a ridge on the edge of a tree-free clearing that was swarming with acromantulas. A chill went through Bryt and her heart began pounding more as excited clicks echoed throughout the hallow.

Bryt yelped as she suddenly hit the ground between Harry and Ron. Fang was shaking so hard behind her that he was causing her to begin shaking, or it could have been her own fear causing it. Bryt glanced between her two friends and realized they were both as white-faced and terrified as she was, their mouths hanging open as if they were trying to yell.

"Argog!" a strange, clicking voice came from behind and Bryt realized it was one of the acromantulas, "Argog!"

Bryt's breath caught as she noticed an acromantula larger than any they'd seen so far came from the center of a domed web. It was obviously the oldest for gray hairs shone through the black of his body and he seemed to be blind from the age, all eight of his eyes were white, standing out in his head.

"What is it?" Argog asked, his voice clicking like the first's.

"Men."

"Is it Hagrid?" Argog seemed to be looking around, despite the fact he was blind.

"Strangers," another acromantula replied.

"Kill them. I was sleeping..."

"We're friends of Hagrid's!" Harry suddenly yelled.

Bryt shivered as the acromantulas' clicks echoed around them and she tried not to look around, instead she watched Argog in front of them.

"Hagrid has never sent men into our hallow before," Argog said after a while.

"Hagrid's in trouble," Harry replied, "That's why we've come."

"In trouble?" Argog seemed concerned at the news, "But why has he sent you?"

Bryt glanced at Harry, who was still on the ground next to her. His face was pale and he still seemed as frightened as her, which made her wonder how he was able to speak. She knew she never would have been able to get a single word out.

"They think, up at the school," Harry's voice was strangely calm, "That Hagrid's been setting a—a—something on the students. They've sent him to Azkaban."

Angry clicks filled the hollow and Bryt felt a wave of cold fear. She glanced between her friends and noticed Ron was paler than before and Bryt was surprised he hadn't fainted by now. She couldn't imagine how Ron was taking everything, it was probably a worst nightmare come true for him. Trying to comfort her friend, Bryt slowly reached her hand over and gripped his, though he didn't seem to notice.

"But that was years ago," Argog brought Bryt's attention back to him, "Years and years ago. I remember it well. That's why they made him leave the school. They believed _I_ was the monster that dwells in what they call the Chamber of Secrets. They thought that Hagrid had opened the Chamber and set me free."

"And you...you didn't come from the Chamber of Secrets?" Harry asked.

_'Wrong move,'_ Bryt thought, wincing as Argog began clicking angrily.

"I! I was not born in the castle. I come from a distant land. A traveler gave me to Hagrid when I was an egg. Hagrid was only a boy, but he cared for me, hidden in a cupboard in the castle, feeding me on scraps from the table. Hagrid is my good friend, a good man. When I was discovered, and blamed for the death of a girl, he protected me. I have lived here in the forest since, where Hagrid still visits me. He even found me a wife, Mosag, and you see how our family has grown, all through Hagrid's goodness..."

Bryt forced herself to glance around, telling herself that every single acromantula she saw around her was Argog's relatives.

"So you never—" Harry spoke up again, "Never attacked anyone?"

"Never," Argog replied, "It would have been my instinct, but out of respect for Hagrid, I never harmed a human. The body of the girl who was killed was discovered in a bathroom. I never saw any part of the castle but the cupboard in which I grew up. Our kind like the dark and quiet..."

"But then...Do you know what _did_ kill that girl?" Harry asked, "Because whatever it is, it's back and attacking people again—"

Bryt yelped and shook more as angry clicks filled the air, even louder this time, and she could see the acromantulas moving around them.

"That thing that lives in the castle," Argog clicked, "Is an ancient creature we spiders fear above all others. Well do I remember how I pleaded with Hagrid to let me go, when I sensed the beast moving about the school."

"What is it?" Harry asked.

"We do not speak of it! We do not name it! I never even told Hagrid the name of the dread creature, through he asked me, many times."

Argog was starting to move back into his web and Bryt shook violently as she noticed the other acromantulas were starting to move closer to the three friends and dog.

"We'll just go, then," Harry called out.

"Go? I think not..."

"But—but—"

"My sons and daughters do not harm Hagrid, on my command. But I cannot deny them fresh meat, when it wanders so willingly into our midst. Good-bye, friend of Hagrid."

Bryt, Harry, and Ron turned, stumbling to their feet as the giant spiders began closing in on them. Bryt, shaking still, started to pull out her wand in a useless attempt to fight when a bright light came, followed by the enchanted Ford Anglia. It came plowing noisily through the acromantulas until it got in front of the three friends and the doors flew open.

"Get Fang!" Harry called, jumping into the car.

Bryt and Ron both grabbed onto Fang, shoving him into the car before climbing in themselves. As soon as everyone was in, the doors shut and the car shot off through the trees on its own. Bryt bounced in the seat as the car moved around trees and through the forest on some predetermined path.

"Are you okay?" Harry asked.

"Y-yeah..." Bryt nodded, "I...I think..."

She looked over at Ron, who was still pale and still staring ahead with his mouth hanging open. Bryt couldn't imagine how he was feeling at the moment. Bryt tried to imagine if the creatures had been giant rats and she shuttered, squeezing her eyes shut to get rid of the image. Bryt lifted a hand and patted Ron lightly on the back.

"It's over now," she said, trying to comfort Ron as patches of sky became visible, "See? We're out."

The car suddenly jerked to a stop and Bryt threw up her arms to brace herself. Harry opened the door and Fang flew from the car, straight to Hagrid's hut. Bryt and Harry climbed out, then waited on Ron to regain his composure and join them before the car disappeared back into the forest.

Harry went to get his Invisibility Cloak and Ron suddenly ran towards the pumpkin patch. Bryt went to follow, but could hear Ron throwing up, so she stopped and leaned against the outside of the house, watching for Harry. By the time Harry had come over, Ron was wiping his mouth with his sleeve.

"Follow the spiders," Ron groaned, "I'll never forgive Hagrid. We're lucky to be alive."

"Hagrid probably thought they wouldn' hurt us," Bryt said slowly, brushing away strands of her hair that had fallen loose from her ponytail.

"That's exactly Hagrid's problem!" Ron exclaimed, "He always thinks monsters aren't all as bad as they're made out, and look where it's got him! A cell in Azkaban! What's the point in sending us in there? What have we found out, I'd like to know?"

"That Hagrid never opened the Chamber of Secrets," Harry said as the three huddled under the cloak, "He was innocent."

Ron made a noise that showed he didn't agree and Bryt rolled her eyes.

"And it'll help us find what the real creature in the Chamber is," Bryt said, "I can start lookin' at creatures that spiders are afraid of." Bryt paused, something coming to mind that she thought might help distract Ron a little. "And we learned my bracelet _is_ lucky."

"Are you _mad_?" Ron asked, staring at Bryt in shock, "How is nearly getting killed by giant spiders _lucky_?"

"They were acromantulas, Ron," Bryt said, "And you said earlier that we're _lucky_ to be alive."

Ron muttered something that Bryt couldn't hear and she didn't get to comment on it because they had reached the castle. Easing inside, the three began the quiet, tense-filled walk back to the Gryffindor common room. Once there, Bryt said good night to her friends and headed up the staircase to her room. She changed into her pajamas and pulled out her diary, writing about what had happened in the forest. Once done, she blew out a candle and curled up in her bed, staring above her as she tried to go to sleep, but her mind was racing, still going over everything that had happened and the information Argog had given them. She soon found herself stating the facts in her mind.

Mrs. Norris had been attacked first on Halloween. Bryt still remembered the flooded hallways and falling into the puddle that night. Colin had been attacked next as he was sneaking to see Harry in the Hospital wing, and then there was Justin and Nearly Headless Nick. And the last two, of course, were Hermione and the Ravenclaw. Bryt still wondered what they had been doing with a mirror (which McGonagall had said was found with them) and she began thinking if it had anything to do with the creature in the halls, if Hermione had figured it out that day after Harry had heard the voice again...

Bryt suddenly sat up straight in her bed. She suddenly realized Hermione _had_ figured out what the creature was, and Bryt had a feeling she just realized it as well. She had always ignored it before because the creature _killed_ instead of Petrified, but when she thought about the circumstances, it made sense. After all, it could have been that no one had looked at it directly. The information from Argog was the final clue, spiders were afraid of this creature...

"A basilisk!" Bryt whispered, "It _has_ to be!"


	18. Good and Bad News

"A basilisk?" Harry raised his eyebrow the next morning at breakfast when Bryt had shared her theory. The three were leaned towards each other, talking in whispers to keep anyone from overhearing.

"It makes sense," Bryt replied, "And it also explains the voices you hear, Harry. You could be hearin' the basilisk, a giant snake. Sworn enemies of spiders, that's why they've all been tryin' to get away from the castle. And it's why the roosters have been gettin' killed. Their cry can kill a basilisk."

"I still don't get something, though," Ron said, "You said basilisks _kill_ when they look at someone. No one's died."

"No one looked at the basilisk directly," Bryt answered, "Mrs. Norris saw its reflection in the water, remember the hall was flooded. Colin saw it through his camera, and Justin through Nearly Headless Nick. Of course, Nick could have looked at it directly, but he's already dead. And I bet Hermione figured it out. That's why she and that Ravenclaw had the mirror, they were usin' it to look around corners."

Bryt felt proud of herself as she studied Ron and Harry's looks as they stared at her, trying to take in what she had just told them.

"And how, exactly, is a giant snake going through the castle halls without being noticed?" Ron asked.

Bryt frowned. "I haven' thought of that..." she said slowly. It seemed her theory had a flaw in it. She was going to have to try and figure that out later. "Anyway, what were you wantin' to say earlier, Harry?"

"Ron and I think we know who died last time," Harry said, "Moaning Myrtle."

"Are you _serious_?" Bryt asked, raising an eyebrow, "_Moanin' Myrtle_?"

"Think about it, Argog did say that the girl who died had died in a bathroom," Harry said, "It could easily be Myrtle."

"Too bad we won' be able to go ask her," Bryt sighed, "No way we'll be able to get near that bathroom."

As their conversation ended, the three stood up and headed for Transfiguration with the rest of their class. They took their usual seats and got ready for class. It was in that class that McGonagall informed them that their exams were only a week away.

"_Exams_?" Seamus cried out, "We're still getting _exams_?"

It was at that moment that Neville dropped his wand, which gave a loud bang, and Neville's desk toppled over, suddenly missing a leg. McGonagall fixed it easily before turning back to Seamus.

"The whole point of keeping the school open at this time is for you to receive your education," McGonagall said, "The exams will therefore take place as usual, and I trust you are all studying hard."

_'Yeah right!'_ Bryt thought. The last thing on her mind lately was her schoolwork. Bryt didn't seem to be alone as the room erupted into whispers.

"Professor Dumbledore's instructions were to keep the school running as normally as possible," McGonagall said shortly, "And that, I need hardly point out, means finding out how much you learned this year."

Bryt groaned at the thought, knowing there was no way she'd ever pass her exams, and looked between her friends. Harry was staring at his desk and Ron was looking horrified.

"Can you imagine me taking exams with this?" Ron groaned, holding up his wand. Bryt grinned sympathetically.

Bryt spent most of her free time after that with Ron and Harry in the common room, trying to go back over every note they had made in class in a desperate attempt to cram for their exams. Still, as the exams came ever close, Bryt felt it was hopeless.

"I'm gonna flunk, I know it," Bryt groaned one morning during breakfast, "They're three days away and I can't remember a _thing_!"

"At least you won't fail alone," Ron said, as if he were trying to cheer her up.

Bryt groaned again as McGonagall stood up at the staff table.

"I have some good news," she said.

"Dumbledore's come back!" several people called out.

"You've caught the Heir of Slytherin!" someone called hopefully.

"Quidditch matches are back on!" Wood yelled out somewhere down the Gryffindor table.

McGonagall waited for the Great Hall to quiet down before she continued.

"Professor Sprout has informed me that the Mandrakes are ready for cutting at last," she said, "Tonight, we will be able to revive those people who have been Petrified. I need hardly remind you all that one of them may well be able to tell us who, or what, attacked them. I am hopeful that this dreadful year will end with our catching the culprit."

Relief rushed through Bryt and she felt happier than she had in months. Hermione was going to be okay! She would be back to normal, sitting with her friends by the next day. Nothing could be better news for Bryt.

"Hermione'll know who attacked her, no doubt!" Bryt laughed happily, already looking forward to seeing her friend again, "I bet she'll say it was a basilisk, too, just watch."

"She'll go crazy when she finds out we have exams in three days' time, mind you," Ron laughed, "She hasn't studied. It might be kinder to leave her where she is till they're over."

Bryt burst into a fit of giggles as Ginny took a seat next to Ron. Bryt's laughing settled instantly at how nervous Ginny looked.

"What's up?" Ron asked.

Ginny looked around, as if she were afraid she'd be overheard.

"Something wrong?" Bryt asked, blinking.

"I've got to tell you something," Ginny's voice was low and she was keeping her gaze downward.

"What is it?" Harry asked.

Ginny shifted slightly, as if she were trying to figure out how to start.

"_What_?" Ron asked.

Ginny started to say something, but went silent again. Harry leaned forward across the table and Bryt leaned in as well.

"Is it something about the Chamber of Secrets?" Harry whispered, "Have you seen something? Someone acting oddly?"

Ginny took a deep breath, getting ready to say something, when Percy walked over, looking exhausted.

"If you've finished eating, I'll take that seat, Ginny," he said, "I'm starving. I've only just come off patrol duty."

Ginny sprang to her feet and hurried away from the group. Bryt blinked and watched her disappear down the table as Percy sat down, fixing himself something to drink.

"Percy!" Ron snapped, "She was just about to tell us something important!"

Percy suddenly choked on his drink and Bryt fought back a laugh.

"What sort of thing?" Percy patted his chest slightly.

"I just asked her if she'd seen anything odd," Harry said, "And she started to say—"

"Oh—that—that's nothing to do with the Chamber of Secrets," Percy cut in.

"How do you know?" Ron asked.

"Well, er, if you must know," Percy stammered, "Ginny, er, walked in on me the other day when I was—well, never mind—the point is, she spotted me doing something and I, um, asked her not to mention it to anybody. I must say, I did think she'd keep her word. It's nothing, really, I'd just rather—"

"If it's nothin'," Bryt said, "Why don' you tell _us_?"

"Yeah, we won't laugh," Ron smirked.

"Pass me those rolls, Harry," Percy didn't seem to want to keep on the subject anymore, "I'm starving."

With the news that Hermione would be back to normal that night, Bryt was a lot happier during their classes. Not even Lockhart could pull down Bryt's mood as he escorted them to their History of Magic class.

"Mark my words," he was saying, "The first words out of those poor Petrified people's mouths will be _'It was Hagrid.'_ Frankly, I'm astounded Professor McGonagall thinks all these securities measures are necessary."

"I agree, sir," Harry said and Ron dropped his books. Bryt almost did herself, staring at Harry with wide eyes.

"Thank you, Harry," Lockhart said as they stopped for Hufflepuffs to cross their path, "I mean, we teachers have quiet enough to be getting on with, without walking students to classes and standing guard all night..."

Bryt suddenly caught on to what Harry was doing. Despite the news they got that morning, Harry was still wanting to talk to Moaning Myrtle and he was creating a chance for them to get away.

"That's right," Ron spoke up, obviously he had caught on, too, "Why don't you leave us here, sir, we've only got one more corridor to go—"

"You know, Weasley, I think I will," Lockhart said, "I really should go and prepare my next class—"

Lockhart hurried off then and Bryt rolled her eyes, though she was grinning over how Harry's plan had worked.

"Prepare his class," Ron echoed sarcastically, "Gone to curl his hair, more like."

Where Bryt would have once hit Ron for that comment, she was agreeing with Ron this time. Ever since Hagrid's arrest, Bryt had been losing her respect for Lockhart more and more, and slowly beginning to believe Julio had been right about Lockhart being a fraud.

The three friends were just getting around a corner, away from the rest of the second-year Gryffindors, when McGonagall's voice suddenly caused them to stop.

"Potter! Weasley! Miss Watkins! What are you doing?"

Bryt turned and saw McGonagall coming, looking extremely angry.

"We were—we were—" Ron started.

"Goin'—Goin' to see..." Bryt trailed off.

"Hermione," Harry suddenly said and Bryt, Ron, and McGonagall all looked at him.

"We haven't seen her for ages, Professor," Harry said, shifting slightly as Bryt noticed he stepped on Ron's foot, "And we thought we'd sneak into the hospital wing, you know, and tell her the Mandrakes are nearly ready and, er, not to worry—"

Bryt watched McGonagall and cringed slightly, expecting the woman to start yelling. She doubted McGonagall was going to believe Harry's story.

"Of course," McGonagall surprised Bryt, but Bryt was more surprised to hear their teacher's voice break, "Of course, I realize this has all been hardest on the friends of those who have been...I quite understand. Yes, Potter, of course you may visit Miss Granger. I will inform Professor Binns where you've gone. Tell Madam Pomfrey I have given you my permission."

Bryt walked off with her friends, not believing their luck. Bryt glanced over her shoulder as she heard McGonagall blew her nose around the corner.

"That," Ron brought Bryt's attention back to her friends, "Was the best story you've ever come up with, Harry."

But it also meant that the three had to go visit Hermione now. The three headed up to the Hospital Wing where Madam Pomfrey was reluctant to let the students in.

"There's just no _point_ in talking to a Petrified person," she said as she finally let them pass.

Bryt agreed slightly as she headed over, sitting next to Hermione's bed, Harry and Ron sitting on either side of her. Bryt sighed, not wanting to look at Hermione's face, so she let her gaze go to Hermione's hand where she noticed something and the blonde cocked her head slightly.

"Wonder if she did see the attacker, though?" Ron asked, "Because if he sneaked up on them all, no one'll ever know..."

Bryt would have said that Hermione would have _had_ to see the basilisk in the mirror to be Petrified, but she was preoccupied as she leaned forward slightly and noticed that Hermione was clutching a piece of paper in her hand.

"Hey, look," Bryt whispered.

"Try and get it out," Ron whispered back.

Bryt nodded and reached for Hermione's hand, working hard to try and slowly get the paper out without ripping it, which turned out to be very difficult. It was almost as if Hermione didn't want anyone to get the paper.

"Got it," Bryt finally whispered, smoothing out the paper, which was a page torn from a book on creatures, and the page was about the basilisk. Beneath the passage was a single word that Hermione had written: _Pipes_.

"I told you!" Bryt whispered, "I told you, it _is_ a basilisk! And Hermione solved how it's movin' through the castle! It's usin' the plumbin'!"

Ron suddenly grasped on to Bryt and she and Harry looked over at their friend.

"The entrance to the Chamber of Secrets!" Ron whispered, "What if it's in a bathroom? What if it's in—"

"—_Moanin' Myrtle's bathroom_," Bryt said at the same time as Harry.

A strange sense of excitement was rushing through Bryt as she sat there with her friends, and it seemed they felt the same.

"This means," Harry whispered, "I can't be the only Parselmouth in the school. The Heir of Slytherin's one, too. That's how he's been controlling the basilisk."

"What're we going to do?" Ron asked, the same look in his eye he had the year before when he was itching for an adventure, "Should we go straight to McGonagall?"

"Let's go the the staff room," Harry had jumped to his feet, "She'll be there in ten minutes. It's nearly break."

Bryt nodded and followed her friends through the corridors, hurrying so they wouldn't get caught. They soon found the staff room and slipped inside and Bryt looked around the room full of wooden chairs and an old wardrobe full of teacher's coats.

Bryt paced around with her friends, waiting for the bell to ring so they could let McGonagall know what they had discovered. The bell never rang, though, instead being replaced by McGonagall's voice amplified through the castle.

"_All students are to return to their House dormitories at once. All teachers return to the staff room. Immediately, please._"

"Not another attack?" Harry asked, looking to Bryt and Ron, "Not now?"

"What'll we do?" Ron asked, "Go back to the dormitory?"

"No," Harry shook his head, then looked towards the wardrobe, "In here. Let's hear what it's all about. Then we can tell them what we've found out."

The three hurried over and hid themselves amongst the teachers' coats and waited, listening to the sounds of students moving towards their common rooms. It wasn't long before the teachers, except for Lockhart, had arrived, looking a mixture of confused and frightened.

"It has happened," McGonagall said, "A student has been taken by the monster. Right into the Chamber itself."

"How can you be sure?" Snape asked, gripping the chair in front of him.

"The Heir of Slytherin left another message," McGonagall said, face pale, "Right underneath the first one. _'Her skeleton will lie in the Chamber forever.'_"

Flitwick began sobbing and the other teachers looked horrified.

"Who is it?" Madam Hooch asked, sinking into a chair, "Which student?"

"Ginny Weasley," McGonagall replied quietly.

Ron suddenly sunk the for floor of the wardrobe between Harry and Bryt. Bryt couldn't blame him, her mind instantly going to how she would react if she had heard one of her brothers was the one taken...She couldn't even begin to imagine, though she thought she'd probably feel much like when she saw Hermione's Petrified form.

"We shall have to send all the students home tomorrow," McGonagall continued, "This is the end of Hogwarts. Dumbledore always said..."

At that moment, Lockhart came into the room with such a joyous grin that Bryt wanted to hit him.

"So sorry—dozed off—what have I missed?"

Every teacher seemed to turn and glare at Lockhart and Snape moved forward.

"Just the man," he said, "The very man. A girl has been snatched by the monster, Lockhart. Taken into the Chamber of Secrets itself. Your moment has come at last."

Lockhart suddenly looked pale, the smile vanishing from his face.

"That's right, Gilderoy," Sprout said, "Weren't you saying just last night that you've known all alone where the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets is?"

"I—well, I—"

"Yes, didn't you tell me you were sure you knew what was inside it?" Flitwick added.

"D-did I? I don't recall—"

"I certainly remember you saying you were sorry you hadn't had a crack at the monster before Hagrid was arrested," Snape spoke up again, "Didn't you say the whole affair had been bungled, and that you should have been given a free rein from the start?"

Lockhart was looking around at the other teachers, looking anything but pleased now.

"I—I really never—you may have misunderstood—"

"We'll leave it to you, then, Gilderoy," McGonagall cut in, "Tonight will be an excellent time to do it. We'll make sure everyone's out of your way. You'll be able to tackle the monster all by yourself. A free rein at last."

Lockhart looked around, as if hoping someone would say something to get him out of the mess he was now in. When none came, he looked frightened as his chin quivered slightly.

"V-very well," he said, "I'll—I'll be in my office, getting—getting ready."

The teachers watched as Lockhart left the room, then McGonagall turned to the others.

"Right," she said, "That's got _him_ out from under our feet. The Heads of Houses should go and inform their students what has happened. Tell them the Hogwarts Express will take them home first thing tomorrow. Will the rest of you please make sure no students have been left outside their dormitories."

Slowly, one by one, the teachers left, leaving Bryt, Ron, and Harry alone in the wardrobe.


	19. Into the Chamber

What had started off seeming to be a good day was suddenly horrible. Bryt sat with Harry, Ron, Fred and George in the Gryffindor common room, by themselves in one corner. All five were silent, none daring say a word. Bryt sat there, occasionally looking to the Weasleys. She kept thinking about how she would have felt if the message on the wall was about one of her brothers and would look away again. She couldn't imagine what they were going through.

By the time the sun was setting, Fred and George had disappeared to their dormitory and the three friends continued to sit in silence, until Ron spoke up.

"She knew something," he said, his voice quiet, "That's why she was taken. It wasn't some stupid thing about Percy at all. She'd found out something about the Chamber of Secrets. That must be why she was—" Ron trailed off, rubbing his face, "I mean, she was a pureblood. There can't be any other reason."

Bryt hugged her sides, staring at the floor in front of her. It felt somehow wrong to be sitting in the common room, doing nothing, but there was nothing that she could do.

"D'you think there's any chance at all she's not—" Ron spoke up in a very weak hopeful voice, "You know—"

Bryt looked up at Ron, willing herself to try and say something, but her voice wouldn't work. All she could do was sit there, curled up on the edge of the couch, and stare at her friend.

"D'you know what?" Ron asked, "I think we should go and see Lockhart. Tell him what we know. He's going to try and get into the Chamber. We can tell him where we think it is, and tell him it's a basilisk in there."

"Yeah, let's go," Bryt nodded and Harry agreed.

No one bothered to say anything as the three stood up and left the common room, probably feeling sorry for Ron. It was a long, quiet walk to Lockhart's office, where a lot of noises were coming from inside.

Harry knocked on the door and everything fell silent inside. The door opened barely an inch and Bryt saw a slit of Lockhart's face through the crack.

"Oh—Mr. Potter—Mr. Weasley—Miss Watkins—" Lockhart said, opening the door so that half of Lockhart's face was now visible, "I'm rather busy at the moment—if you would be quick—"

"Professor, we've got some information for you," Harry said, "We think it'll help you."

"Er—well—it's not terribly—" Lockhart didn't look very happy, "I mean—well—all right—"

Bryt, Ron, and Harry entered Lockhart's office and Bryt's mouth opened slightly as she looked around. All of Lockhart's self-portraits were off the walls and shoved into boxes. Books and robes were a piled mess in a couple of trunks in the center of the room. Bryt couldn't believe it. Lockhart was packing.

"Where're you goin'?" Bryt asked, glaring at their teacher. She clenched her hands into fists, wondering how she had ever respected the man.

"Er, well..." Lockhart started slowly, "Urgent call—unavoidable—got to go—"

"What about my sister?" Ron snapped.

"Well, as to that—most unfortunate—" Lockhart was shoving more objects into bags now, "No one regrets more than I—"

"You're the Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher!" Harry said, "You can't go now! Not with all the Dark stuff going on here!"

"Well—I must say—when I took the job—Nothing in the job description—didn't expect—"

"You're a coward!" Bryt snapped, clenching her fists hard enough that she could feel her fingernails digging into the palms of her hands, "With all that stuff you did in your books—"

"Books can be misleading," Lockhart said.

"You wrote them!" Harry and Bryt shouted together.

"Do use your common sense," Lockhart straightened himself up, "My books wouldn't have sold half as well if people didn't think _I'd_ done all those things. No one wants to read about some ugly old Armenian warlock, even if he did save a village from werewolves. He'd look dreadful on the front cover. No dress sense at all. And the witch who banished the Bandon Banshee had a harelip. I mean, come on—"

"So you've just been taking credit for what a load of other people have done?" Harry asked.

"Harry, Harry," Lockhart shook his head, "It's not nearly as simple as that. There was work involved. I had to track these people down. Ask them exactly how they managed to do what they did. Then I had to put a Memory Charm on them so they wouldn't remember doing it. If there's one thing I pride myself on, it's my Memory Charms. No, it's been a lot of work, Harry. It's not all book signings and publicity photos, you know. You want fame, you have to be prepared for a long hard slog."

Bryt glared as Lockhart closed his trunks before turning back to the students. She was getting a very strong urge to hit her teacher which she felt she'd act on any second now. She clutched her hands into fists, shaking slightly from anger.

"Let's see...I think that's everything. Yes. Only one thing left," Lockhart pulled out his wand, turning to Bryt, Harry, and Ron, "Awfully sorry, but I'll have to put a Memory Charm on you now. Can't have you blabbing my secrets all over the place. I'd never sell another book—"

Bryt went for her wand, but Harry had been faster, shouting "_Expelliarmus_!" Lockhart flew backwards and Ron caught their teacher's wand, tossing it out a window.

"Shouldn't have let Professor Snape teach us that one," Harry said, keeping his wand pointed at Lockhart, who was looking up at Harry, his composure gone. Bryt was gripping her wand hard. Not only was Lockhart a fraud, but he had actually tried to attack a group of second years.

"What d'you want me to do?" he asked, "I don't know where the Chamber of Secrets is. There's nothing I can do."

"Good thing we got a pretty good idea where the Chamber is," Bryt smirked, aiming her own wand at Lockhart, "And the creature that's been attackin' students."

Keeping their wands pointed at Lockhart, Bryt, Harry, and Ron took him down towards Moaning Myrtle's bathroom where they shoved him through the door first. Bryt glanced around to see Myrtle was at her usual toilet.

"Oh, it's you," Myrtle said gloomily, when she spotted them, "What do you want this time?"

"To ask you how you died," Harry said.

Moaning Myrtle suddenly looked so happy that Bryt was taken aback, staring at the ghost strangely.

"Oooh, it was dreadful," she said happily, "It happened right here. I died in this very stall. I remember it so well. I'd hidden because Olive Hornby was teasing me about my glasses. The door was locked, and I was crying, and then I heard somebody come in. They said something funny. A different language, I think it must have been. Anyway, what really got me was that it was a _boy_ speaking. So I unlocked the door, to tell him to go and use his own toilet, and then—I _died_."

"How?" Harry asked.

"No idea. I just remember seeing a pair of great, big, yellow eyes. My whole body sort of seized up, and then I was floating away..." Bryt noticed Myrtle was staring right at Harry with a strange expression, "And then I came back again. I was determined to haunt Olive Hornby, you see. Oh, she was sorry she'd ever laughed at me glasses."

"Where exactly did you see the eyes?" Harry asked.

"Somewhere there," Myrtle pointed to the sink at the end of the row.

Harry and Ron moved over to investigate the sink and Bryt walked over, but kept her gaze and wand locked on Lockhart. She wasn't about to give him the chance to try and attack them again.

"That tap's never worked," Myrtle said and Bryt guessed one of her friends was trying to turn it on.

"Harry," Ron said, "Say something. Something in Parseltongue."

"But—" Harry started, but cut himself off. There was a long pause, then, "Open up."

"English," Ron said.

There was another pause and Bryt glanced over her shoulder to see Harry was cocking his head slightly, staring at the sink. He opened his mouth, but it wasn't English this time. It was the same chilling hissing that Bryt had heard on the night of the Duel Club. Bryt turned completely as the sink's tap began to glow and spin. Then, the sink slid into the ground, leaving a large, open pipe behind. Bryt stared down into the dark tunnel, then looked at her friends.

"I'm going down there," Harry said.

Bryt nodded, knowing Harry would. She wasn't about to let him go alone, and she told him as much.

"Same here," Ron agreed.

All three of them turned to Lockhart, who was starting to get the smile Bryt was beginning to hate back on his face.

"Well, you hardly seem to need me," he said, edging for the door and grabbing the handle, "I'll just—"

"Stop there," Bryt finished, raising her wand again as Harry and Ron pointed their wands at Lockhart as well.

"You can go first," Ron glared.

Lockhart, pale and defenseless against three wands aimed at him, slowly moved to the pipe.

"What good will it do?" Lockhart asked.

Bryt rolled her eyes and shoved Lockhart so he fell down the pipe and out of sight. Bryt gave a small grin, feeling oddly satisfied as she heard Lockhart give a startled shout.

Harry went down next, followed by Ron and Bryt.

Bryt could feel the damp air blowing past her as she went further and further down the slimy pipe for what felt like forever. Not too soon for Bryt, the pipe leveled and she was sent flying across a damp floor, right into Ron, who was just getting to his feet.

"Bryt!" Ron groaned, his voice echoing as he got to his feet again, and then helping Bryt up.

"Sorry," Bryt said, looking around at the dark, damp room they were in and pulling back out her wand, "_Lumos_."

"We must be miles under the school," Harry said, lighting his own wand.

"Under the lake, probably," Ron commented.

"We should get goin'," Bryt said and they began walking along the dark tunnel, their shadows strangely large on the walls.

"Remember," Harry whispered, "Any sign of movement, close your eyes straight away..."

For once, Bryt's nerves didn't give her the urge to ramble, she was too worried about Ginny and what they would do if they did run into the basilisk. The only sound around the group was their echoing footsteps, and then the crunching of animal bones under their feet. Bryt gulped as they continued along the tunnel and did her best not to let her eyes wonder to the floor.

"Harry—" Ron suddenly said, "There's something up there—"

Bryt followed Ron's gaze and squinted, seeing Ron was right. There was definitely something up ahead of them. Something large and unmoving.

"Maybe it's asleep," Harry whispered, looking back at the others.

Bryt nodded, noticing Lockhart covering his eyes nearby and she rolled her eyes before looking back at the form in front of them, her heart pounding. She edged forward with Harry, then her eyes widened. It wasn't the basilisk, but a shedded snake skin nearly twenty feet long and a vivid green.

"Blimey," Ron whispered.

Bryt turned when something caught the corner of her eye and she noticed Lockhart had fallen behind them and she rolled her eyes. Ron moved closer, pointing his wand at Lockhart.

"Get up," he snapped.

Lockhart obeyed, then jumped at Ron, knocking him backwards. Bryt and Harry both moved forward, but Lockhart was on his feet with Ron's wand in his hand as Bryt knelt down next to Ron.

"The adventure ends here!" Lockhart exclaimed, "I shall take a bit of this skin back up to the school, tell them I was too late to save the girl, and that you three _tragically_ lost your minds at the sight of her mangled body—say good-bye to your memories! _Obliviate_!"

Ron's wand backfired, sending Lockhart backwards and setting off an explosion and the tunnel began to collapse. Yelping, Bryt yanked Ron to his feet and the two scampered out of the way of falling rocks. At one point, she slipped and let out a yell as she fell. She started to get up, but pain suddenly rushed through her head. Bryt gave a low groan, then everything around her went black.


	20. Back to Normal

"Bryt! Oi, Bryt!"

Pain was throbbing through Bryt's head, she didn't want to move. She wished whoever was yelling would shut up, it was making her head hurt worse.

"It's no use, Harry," the voice seemed to be talking to someone else now, "I still can't wake her up..."

"That rock must have hit her really hard," a second voice came now, "But at least it looks like the bleeding stopped."

The throbbing was starting to fade, though it was still there and left Bryt's mind in a daze. She tried to concentrate, to recognize the voices talking...

"Yeah, took forever, though," the first voice spoke again(_'Ron...'_ Bryt thought), "Scared me at first when I couldn't wake her up...But she's breathing, so she's still alive."

"Will she be okay?" a new voice, quiet, female...Ginny.

"Yeah," the second voice, Harry, came, "Madam Pomfrey will fix her up, good as new."

Bryt squeezed her eyes tighter shut, then winced against the pain.

"Hey, I think she's coming to!" Ron's voice came in an excited rush. Bryt winced again.

Bryt slowly forced herself to open her eyes and found herself staring down at her lap, apparently she was sitting up. Groaning, Bryt lifted her head and found herself staring at two blurred figures crouched in front of her. Both Ron and Harry's worried expressions suddenly changed to relief as Bryt managed to focus her gaze. Bryt moved to get up and Harry and Ron each grabbed one of Bryt's arms to help her. Bryt winced again at the throbbing in her head. Slowly, she reached up and felt something sticky above the edge of her right eye. A rock must have hit her after she fell...Bryt looked around and noticed Ginny nearby, looking pale. As soon as Bryt saw the youngest Weasley, everything came rushing back to her.

"You found Ginny!" she rushed, turning to Harry and gasping, "You're covered in blood!"

"I'll explain later," Harry said, "Are you okay?"

Bryt nodded slowly as she looked around and blinked, suddenly realizing they were in Moaning Myrtle's bathroom.

"How'd we get back here?" she asked.

"Fawks," Harry said, nodding over to where a swan-sized crimson bird was perched on the edge of one of the sinks.

"Phoenixes can carry heavy loads," Bryt nodded. Her head was barely hurting anymore, "Where's Professor Lockhart?"

"Over there," Ron motioned over his shoulder, "My wand backfired on him, it's what caused the tunnel to collapse. Lockhart doesn't have a clue who he is."

For some reason, Bryt found that idea hilarious and she burst into a fit of giggles.

"I think that rock hit her harder than we thought," Bryt heard Ron mutter to Harry and Bryt looked over at them.

"I think he deserves it," Bryt said, then noticed something at Harry's side, "...How did you get a sword?"

"I'll explain later," Harry said again.

Bryt nodded and looked back over to Ginny. The girl was still pale and looked like she might break down crying. Bryt moved over to her, putting her arm around the girl's shoulders.

"It's over, Ginny," she said, "Everyone's okay now."

"Where now?" Ron asked, watching Ginny closely.

Fawkes seemed to answer for them, flying along a corridor. The group followed along behind, Bryt keeping her arm around Ginny's shoulder to comfort the girl. They didn't stop until they found themselves at McGonagall's office. Bryt swallowed hard as Harry knocked on the door before opening it slowly.

Bryt glanced around the silent room. Mr. And Mrs. Weasley, whose face was wet with tears, were sitting by the fireplace and looking at the group in shock and McGonagall was looking as if she might have a heart attack. To Bryt's surprise, Dumbledore was standing by the fireplace, actually smiling.

"_Ginny_!" Mrs. Weasley suddenly cried, jumping to her feet and rushing across the room to hug her daughter. Mr. Weasley was right behind.

After a moment, Mrs. Weasley turned towards Bryt, Harry, and Ron and hugged them as well.

"You saved her! You saved her! _How_ did you do it?"

"I think we'd all like to know that," McGonagall said in a weak voice.

Harry slowly moved over to McGonagall's desk and put down the sword and, to Bryt's surprise since she hadn't seen it, the Sorting Hat, as well as what looked like a destroyed book, a large hole in the center of it.

Slowly, Harry began explaining everything that had happened that year. Everything from the voices he had been hearing and how it turned out to be a basilisk; the three meeting Argog in the forest and finding out the girl who had died last time was in a bathroom and how they realized it was Moaning Myrtle; and lastly how they had found and opened the Chamber of Secrets.

"Very well," McGonagall said, "So you found out where the entrance was—breaking a hundred school rules into pieces along the way, I might add—but how on _earth_ did you all get out of there alive, Potter?"

"Well, it was thanks to Fawkes," Harry's voice sounded almost hoarse now, "The basilisk was trying to attack when Fawkes showed up and blinded it. He had also brought me the Sorting Hat, where I got the sword from. I managed to stab the basilisk through the roof of the mouth..."

Bryt watched as Harry trailed off, as if there were something else that he couldn't figure out how to say, and her friend looked towards Dumbledore. Bryt, however, was in complete awe. Harry had actually _killed_ the basilisk?

"What interests _me_ most," Dumbledore spoke up softly, "Is how Lord Voldemort managed to enchant Ginny, when my sources tell me he is currently in hiding in the forests of Albania."

Bryt's mouth fell open as she looked between Harry and Dumbledore. How in the world was Voldemort related to what had happened all year?

"W-what's that?" Mr. Weasley asked in disbelief, "_You-Know-Who_? En-enchant _Ginny_? But Ginny's not...Ginny hasn't been...has she?"

Bryt looked at Ron and noticed he was pale again and Bryt looked back over towards Harry.

"It was this diary," he said, picking up the destroyed book, "Riddle wrote in it when he was sixteen..."

_'Riddle's diary?'_ Bryt thought, _'What does that thing have to do with anythin'?'_

"Brilliant," Dumbledore said, studying the book, "Of course, he was probably the most brilliant student Hogwarts has ever seen." Dumbledore looked up at the others, and Bryt was still confused. "Very few people know that Lord Voldemort was once called Tom Riddle. I taught him myself, fifty years ago, at Hogwarts. He disappeared after leaving the school...traveled far and wide...sank so deeply into the Dark Arts, consorted with the very worst of our kind, underwent so many dangerous, magical transformations, that when he resurfaced as Lord Voldemort, he was barely recognizable. Hardly anyone connected Lord Voldemort with the clever, handsome boy who was once Head Boy here."

_'Tom Riddle's actually Voldemort?'_ Bryt thought, trying to wrap her mind around that fact. Somehow, even though she knew Voldemort had once been at Hogwarts and in Slytherin, she still couldn't imagine the man once being a kid and sitting in the classrooms, learning like any other student.

"But, Ginny," Mrs. Weasley spoke up, pulling Bryt from her thoughts, "What's our Ginny got to do with—with—_him_?"

"His d-diary!" Ginny spoke up through tears, "I've b-been writing in it, and he's been w-writing back all year—"

"_Ginny_!" Mr. Weasley cried out, shocked, "Haven't I taught you _anything_? What have I always told you? Never trust anything that can think for itself _if you can't see where it keeps its brain_? Why didn't you show the diary to me, or your mother? A suspicious object like that, it was _clearly_ full of Dark Magic—"

"I d-didn't know," Ginny cried, "I found it inside one of the books Mum got me. I th-thought someone had just left it in there and forgotten about it—"

"Miss Weasley should go up to the hospital wing straight away," Dumbledore cut in, "This has been a terrible ordeal for her. There will be no punishment. Older and wiser wizards than she have been hoodwinked by Lord Voldemort. Bed rest and perhaps a large, steaming mug of hot chocolate. I always find that cheers me up." Dumbledore have a small smile, looking towards Ginny as he opened the office door. "You will find that Madam Pomfrey is still awake. She's just giving out Mandrake juice—I daresay the basilisk's victims will be waking up any moment."

"So Hermione's okay!" Bryt and Ron chorused. Bryt began grinning again. Hermione would be back to normal very soon.

"There has been no lasting harm done, Ginny," Dumbledore finished.

Bryt watched Mr. and Mrs. Weasley lead their daughter from the room before turning back to Dumbledore.

"You know, Minerva," Dumbledore was saying, "I think all this merits a good _feast_. Might I ask you to go and alert the kitchens?"

"Right," McGonagall nodded, leading for the door, "I'll leave you to deal with Potter, Weasley, and Miss Watkins, shall I?"

"Certainly," Dumbledore replied.

Bryt swallowed as McGonagall left and she looked at her friends before turning to Dumbledore. After all they did, they were still going to be punished?

"I seem to remember telling you two," Dumbledore looked between Harry and Ron on either side of Bryt, "That I would have to expel you if you broke any more school rules."

Bryt swallowed again, suddenly feeling sick. She hadn't been threatened with expulsion at the beginning of the year, but she felt that she would be expelled with her friends anyway.

"Which goes to show that the best of us must sometimes eat our words," Dumbledore continued, smiling a bit, "You will all three receive Special Awards for Services to the School and—let me see—yes, I think two hundred points apiece for Gryffindor."

Relief rushed through Bryt as she began grinning, having to fight the urge to laugh. Special Awards for Services to the School _and_ six hundred points for Gryffindor! Adding that to the basilisk being killed and Hermione would soon be back to normal and Bryt thought that nothing could improve that moment.

"But one of us seems to be keeping mightily quiet about his part in this dangerous adventure," Dumbledore said, "Why so modest, Gilderoy?"

Bryt looked over as Lockhart began looking around, trying to find who Dumbledore was talking to. Bryt had completely forgotten about their teacher being in the room.

"Professor Dumbledore," Ron spoke up, "There was an accident down in the Chamber of Secrets. Professor Lockhart—"

"Am I a professor?" Lockhart interrupted, "Goodness, I expect I was hopeless, was I?"

Bryt gave a snort of laughter, but tried to cover it with a cough.

"He tried to do a Memory Charm and the wand backfired," Ron explained.

"Dear me," Dumbledore shook his head, "Impaled upon your own sword, Gilderoy!"

"Sword? Haven't got a sword. That boy has, though," Lockhart pointed at Harry, "He'll lend you one."

"Would you two mind taking Professor Lockhart up to the infirmary, too?" Dumbledore was looking between Bryt and Ron, "You should really get that cut checked as well, Miss Watkins, and I'd like a few more words with Harry."

Bryt nodded, heading out with Ron to lead Lockhart to the hospital wing. When they got there and explained the situation to Madam Pomfrey, Bryt noticed that Ginny was already asleep. Mrs. Weasley hugged Bryt and Ron again, thanking them again for saving Ginny.

It only took a few seconds for Madam Pomfrey to clean up Bryt's cut and she was free to leave. While Ron decided to head on down to the feast, Bryt insisted on waiting for Hermione. When Madam Pomfrey protested, Bryt simply went into the corridor to wait out there. It wasn't long before Hermione had come out of the hospital wing and Bryt laughed in relief at the sight of her friend, hugging her tightly, not caring about the slime that still covered her that she was now getting on Hermione.

While they walked to the Great Hall, Bryt filled Hermione in on everything she had missed. Hermione seemed horrified when Bryt explained the truth about Lockhart, and even more horrified when she learned that their teacher had tried to attack Bryt, Harry, and Ron. Bryt had just finished her explanation when they reached the Great Hall and the two hurried over towards Harry and Ron, sitting across from their friends.

It was an odd sight in the Great Hall. Practically everyone was in their pajamas and the mood was the best it had been all year. Bryt had joined loudly in the cheering when McGonagall had announced that school exams were canceled, though Hermione wasn't fond of that, and when Dumbledore announced that Lockhart wouldn't be returning to teach the next year.

A little after three in the morning, Hagrid had arrived, patting Harry and Ron on the back so hard that they nearly went face-first into their plates. Bryt laughed, glad she was on the other side of the table and out of Hagrid's reach. All in all, the all-night party was the best Bryt had ever been to.

The rest of the school year passed quickly. Bryt spent what was once their Defense Against the Dark Arts class playing talking with Hermione, giving her more details of everything that had happened while she had been Petrified. News got around that Malfoy's father had lost his position as a school governor, and Ginny seemed to be in a much better mood.

Now, Bryt was sitting in a train compartment with Harry, Hermione, Ron, Fred, George, and Ginny, heading home for the summer. It was almost like another party for them, playing Exploding Snap and practicing the disarming spell, which Bryt was excited to find out that she was pretty good at.

"Ginny," Harry spoke up when Bryt could see they were nearing King's Cross, "What did you see Percy doing that he didn't want you to tell anyone?"

"Oh, that," Ginny started giggling and Bryt looked over, curious, "Well—Percy's got a _girlfriend_."

"_What_?" Fred asked, dropping a pile of books.

"It's the Ravenclaw prefect, Penelope Clearwater," Ginny said, "That's who he was writing to all last summer. He's been meeting her all over the school in secret. I walked in on them _kissing_ in an empty classroom one day. He was so upset when she was—you know—attacked. You won't tease him, will you?"

"Wouldn't dream of it," Fred said, an expression on his face showing that his statement was far from the truth.

"Definitely not," George added, laughing slightly.

As the Hogwarts Express came to a stop, Harry was writing something on a piece of parchment, then tearing it into three pieces and handing one each to Bryt, Ron, and Hermione.

"This is called a telephone number," Harry said to Ron, "I told your dad how to use a telephone last summer—he'll know. Call me at the Dursleys', okay? I can't stand another two months with only Dudley to talk to..."

"Here," Bryt took Harry's quill and wrote down another telephone number on his paper, and on Ron's paper as well, "That's mine. Call anytime, you might even get to talk to Sofí and Julio, they're stayin' the summer with me."

Ron nodded as they started heading off the train.

"Your aunt and uncle will be proud, though, won't they?" Hermione asked Harry, "When they hear what you did this year?"

"Proud?" Harry echoed, "Are you crazy? All those times I could've died, and didn't manage it? They'll be furious..."

Bryt laughed as they went through the barrier together and she said goodbye to her friends before heading over to where her parents and brothers were waiting. As they walked to Mr. Watkins' van, Mike and Drew began a long string of questions about what Bryt had done and learned that year at Hogwarts and Bryt laughed. She draped one arm around each of her brothers and leaned over, telling them the entire story in a whisper.

**-----**

**A/N:** I'm going to try and start putting up Year Three on Monday, but my internet has been acting up a lot lately, so I don't know how reliable that deadline will be. I'll only be updating once a week, though, because I'm still writing on Year Three, and I have a one-shot I've been planning for a while that I might end up writing and putting up sometime soon.


End file.
